Gareth Bale returned to North London last summer with the expectation that he'd get his second wind at Tottenham. But after only 12 appearances in all competitions this season, the Welshman has but a goal to his name, and Spurs manager Jose Mourinho is said to be losing his patience.
There is no official word yet if Tottenham will extend Bale's season-long loan deal but a recently shared clip of the Premier League club's training showed Mourinho addressing the star and asking pointed questions, the answers to which Spurs fans would love to hear.
From the report by Talk Sport, the club boss was heard as saying: "You want to stay here? Or go to Real Madrid and play no football?"
It was unclear if the remarks resulted in a heated exchange between the head coach and the player but the incident highlighted the sentiment that has so far characterized Bale's second spell at Tottenham. The star has yet to make an impact in the campaign and speculations are rife Mourinho's side intends to send back to Real Madrid when the season ends.
Yet according to the club boss, the matter of Bale's fate next season is not on the discussion table at the moment. The Portuguese said the winger is on loan from Los Blancos and the deal will end when the season is concluded.
Mourinho refused to talk about Bale's status with the club but he reminded that returning to top form is not an easy process, especially in the case of Bale who hardly played in his last two seasons at Santiago Bernabeu.
"He's now coming back, it's not an easy process. Everybody knows the past couple of seasons at Real Madrid were not easy for him," explained the Spurs boss.
Bale had a falling out with Real manager Zinedine Zidane and the rift led to the player losing his spot at the club. The temporary transfer to Tottenham last season was thought to be the chance for Bale to prove that he can still play competitively.
However, the 31-year-old needs to work harder to regain the form and confidence that won him numerous titles with Real Madrid, according to former Tottenham coach Glenn Hoddle.
The Bale that we see now is "tentative and fragile" and Hoddle said the star needs to step up and win the trust of his coach.
"It may be a mental thing but [hopefully] he can break through and contribute for Tottenham in a big way this season ... He's just got to get on the pitch to do it," Goal reported the pundit as saying.
Hoddle acknowledged that Bale presently lacks sufficient time on the pitch to prove his worth. He added though that the opportunity will arise once the star proves to Mourinho that he is ready to again play good football.
