Gareth Bale challenged to show Real Madrid he's worth world-record £85m fee they paid Spurs
Gareth Bale challenged to show Real Madrid he's worth world-record £85m fee they paid Spurs
"You are now in the most demanding club in the world. Challenges are constant - even after victory" says club president Perez
"No, no. Owen WASN'T Welsh!' Bale and Perez strike a pose
Reuters
Real Madrid president Florentino Perez has warned Gareth Bale he must now prove he is worth his world record transfer fee, from Darren Lewis in Madrid.
The £85.3million winger was unveiled as the the club’s newest Galactico on Monday in front of thousands of fans at Real's iconic Bernabeu home.
Real
supremo Perez spelled out the challenge before the Welshman as he said:
“You are now in the most demanding club in the world. Our fans want the
most of you and your colleagues, but they will give you the most.
“Challenges
are constant - even after victory. But never forget the energy of this
stadium will be your ally. Many great players have played here and you
will be one of their heirs.
“Bale’s determination and conviction
were key to his arrival at Real Madrid. Gareth, that moment you dreamed
about is now a reality.”
Bale said later: “The transfer had
nothing to do with me. That’s between Real Madrid and Tottenham. I
wanted to come here, whether it was for a penny or whatever.
“It’s
[only] as much pressure as I put on myself. I wanted to come here and
play the best football and I’m going to give 100 per cent and try to
help the team to win things.
“I remember Zidane scoring the winning goal in the final of the Champions League, I was at an age where I could take it all in.
“Real
Madrid has always been the greatest club in the world. It was amazing
to watch all those great players and it’s great to now be a part of
that.”
Bale is hoping his first game in a Real Madrid shirt will be away to Villarreal on September 14.
His first home game is expected to be against - amusingly for a Welshman - Getafe seven days later.
Despite being mildly criticised over his conduct by Spurs chairman Daniel Levy, Bale said: “It’s obviously been a difficult time.
“Everyone
knows he’s a hard businessman but he obviously wanted to do the
business for Tottenham and he’s been good for the club. He has helped
them to grow the squad.”
Asked if there was a deal with Levy
allowing him to quit the club following last season's failure to reach
the Champions League, he said: “I think that’s in the past.
“We
had our own private conversation between me and him but we came to an
agreement finally, there’s not much point in going over it.”
Perez
added: “These were intense and complex negotiations, prolonged in time,
but I want to thank Tottenham for allowing us to have this wonderful
player.
"We finally made it and he is here to be part of our team.”
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Real Madrid via Getty Images
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Gareth Bale's Unveiling at Real Madrid
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* GARETH BALE has declared he does intend for play for Wales in their forthcoming World Cup qualifiers, writes Darren Lewis.
Real
Madrid’s new star, an inspirational and highly-respected figure within
his national team squad, wants to join up with Chris Coleman’s men.
Wales play away in Macedonia on Friday, then host Serbia next Tuesday.
Real boss Carlo Ancelotti had been keen to keep Bale in the Spanish capital this week to work on a specially-constructed programme to get fit, as he has not played since a Spurs friendly on July 16. National treasure: Bale wants to play in Wales' two matches
Getty
But the 24-year-old said: “I’ve been doing my fitness work.
Now I’m going to be looking to training with Wales. I haven’t had a lot
of match time, but it will be an honour to play for my country.
“It’s well known that I had a slight injury which took me a bit of time but to recover from.
“But I always wanted to be here in the white shirt of Madrid and hopefully I can get match time with Wales and come back fit.”
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