Jose Mourinho heaps praise on Gareth Bale and admits Spurs 'need his talent' following slow start

Published on: 28 February 2021

Jose Mourinho believes there isn’t a manager in world football who would turn their nose up at Gareth Bale when he is in the kind of form and condition that he showed in destroying Burnley on Sunday.

The Tottenham manager and Bale appeared close to a public falling out three weeks ago over opposing views of the forward’s fitness.

But after promising performances in his previous two games, Bale excelled in only his third start of the season with a pair of goals and an assist in the 4-0 beating of Burnley. The loanee, who has struggled so notably since his move from Real Madrid, was comfortably the best player on the pitch.

Mourinho said: ‘Gareth is a very experienced guy, he knows his body better than anyone. It would be very nice for me now to say that I handled the situation amazingly well. I'm not that kind of guy.

‘Sometimes people write things, and sometimes, some of you like to imagine stories, to say things that are not really true, but there is not one single manager in the world that doesn't play Gareth Bale if Gareth Bale is in very good condition.

‘It's not just about the two goals he scored, it's fundamentally about his physical performance. Now he's not flat. Now he has ups and downs in the speed he brings to his actions. His condition is very good.’

Despite Bale’s strong performance, Mourinho insisted he will still have to use him sparingly as Spurs manage their busy domestic and European schedules.

He said: ‘A player that gives me this kind of performance of course I want to play him on Thursday and on Sunday, and I want to play him next week against Dinamo Zagreb but I don't think I can.’

Bale said: ‘I have been building up a little bit to get fully fit – I felt comfortable and my form is coming back. I know you get criticism but I am experienced enough to keep my head down, not say anything stupid and keep plugging away.’

Burnley manager Sean Dyche was exasperated after his side lost their first game in five. Pointing to lax defending on the first two Spurs goals inside the opening 15 minutes, he said: ‘If you keep those games tight sometimes these big sides get nervous.

'We never got near to getting them to that stage. Their form was indifferent but that doesn’t mean they aren’t a top side. We still had to turn up.’

Source: m.allfootballapp.com

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