Bale: "If you want answers, maybe you should ask Madrid"

Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale spoke to the media while on international duty and discussed his current situation at the Bernabéu and addressed the criticism he receives for his love of the golf course.

Are you feeling more settled after a difficult summer?

I guess so. I’m in perfect shape, which perhaps maybe I wasn’t during the summer. We’ve had a full week of training and I’m looking forward to tomorrow’s game. We need to win to get back on the right track and that’s what we’re going to try and do.

June form

I don’t think the pressure affected me mentally but maybe going into games after five or six weeks without playing yeah, I wasn’t where I wanted to be physically.

Criticism

I don’t listen to it because they don’t know what they’re talking about! I don’t read the papers. The majority of people don’t understand the situation.”

Summer exit talk

It didn’t affect me that much, I had a great summer holiday. I kept my head down during pre-season and a lot was said, good and bad, but I kept on working hard in training. The things that happened will remain private within the club but if you want answers, maybe you should ask Real Madrid.

Was this your toughest summer?

It hasn’t been great, but I’ve had worse. I remember there was a whole year when I didn’t play for Harry Redknapp. It hasn’t been ideal but it’d done now and I know how to deal with it. You just try and keep your head up and work hard. I’ve had a good pre-season in terms of training and I’ve started the season well.

Have you rediscovered your love for the game?

I never lost it. I’m a professional. I get paid to play football. You go through ups and downs, but you have to work hard in training and do things in the right way. When things aren’t going your way, if you work hard the situation will change and you’ll be rewarded.

And the golf, your favourite hobby…

Obviously football is the number one. The golf is just a hobby like any other. There’s nothing wrong with playing golf and people are just making mountains out of molehills. It’s just something I enjoy and it helps me to switch off when I’m not on the pitch.