Gareth Bale: It was a relief when world-record transfer to Real Madrid finally happened
"It’s been very stressful, to say the least. I knew they
were interested from the start and I was always confident the move would
go through"
onEdition
Gareth Bale admits the wait to join Real Madrid was
extremely stressful, but that becoming the latest Galactico in a
world-record £85m move made it all worthwhile.
Returning to his Welsh homeland for the first time since his transfer from Tottenham was confirmed on Sunday night, Bale said: “It’s obviously been a whirlwind few days, but it was great being unveiled.
“It’s quite nice to come back and relax - and get back to normality, really.
“It’s
been very stressful, to say the least. I knew they were interested from
the start and I was always confident the move would go through but
obviously the chairman, Daniel Levy, had to do his business and do
Tottenham well, so I kind of understood that.
“But at
the same time, thinking of myself, it was a hard time. It was stressful
and I just had to be patient and try and focus and I believed they
[Real Madrid] would get the deal through, and finally they did.”
Bale
may have grown up in Cardiff but insists he had always been a Real fan,
and dreamt about playing for the Spanish giants as a youngster.
In
an exclusive interview with BT Sport ahead of Wales' World Cup
qualifiers against Macedonia and Serbia, Bale said, “When I was younger I
had some close friends who always loved European football and Real
Madrid at that time were the dominant force.
“I remember family holidays when we used to go
to Spain and we’d bring back replica shirts of Real Madrid and pretend
to be the players when we played in the park.
“I’ve followed them ever since and the football they played, the team they had, was amazing and it’s just great to be there.”
Football
fans the nation over were given daily bulletins on the progress of
Bale’s transfer but it was not until Sunday that the worst-kept secret
in the game was finally confirmed.
How did Bale - a BT Sport Ambassador - react when the deal went through?
“Just a sigh of relief, to be honest,” he said.
“Travelling over there, the excitement got more and more and I just felt honoured that I was going there.”
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Gareth Bale: Career in pictures
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And the forward is grateful to the staff at the south coast club for sticking by him when many young footballers could have fallen by the wayside.
"It was quite difficult," he said. "I had a lot of growing problems with my back which made my hamstrings tighter which means I couldn't run so quick and it kind of affected the way I played.
"So it was quite frustrating at that time, trying to do things you were able to do before but were then restricted to do.
"I think they believed that it was still there and it was a phase that I just needed to come through.
"There was a lot of debate but I think everybody at Southampton and especially Rod Ruddick, the Southampton scout who actually spotted me when I was nine, all believed that I would make it and we got through that phase and I actually showed what I was capable of."
Bale left Southampton for Tottenham and initially endured a difficult time at White Hart Lane before a switch from left-back further forward saw him flourish.
He is now the most expensive player in the history of football and, although he admits luck has played a role in his rise to the top, he is also proud of much of his own hard work.
"At that time I don't think anybody expected anything in the future to happen as big as it did," he added.
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Real Madrid via Getty Images
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Gareth Bale's Unveiling at Real Madrid
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"I always believed in my ability but I think in any sport you need that little bit of luck.
"That scout might just be there that day that you're playing in a certain game which obviously happened for me.
"So there was an element of luck but I think that a lot of it is down to your hard work and dedication and how much effort you put in on the training pitch and on game days.
"That's been there since I first started and that's still there now."
Check out all the latest News, Sport & Celeb gossip at Mirror.co.uk http://www.mirror.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/gareth-bale-transfer-relief-world-record-2252045#ixzz2e0DdZXJx
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