Nine years and four Champions League wins later, to date, Gareth Bale will leave Real Madrid when his contract expires this summer. Carlo Ancelotti has confirmed the same, while his agent has ignited talks of a Championship switch.
Gareth Bale may or may not get a final bow-out at Santiago Bernabeu when Real Madrid play Real Betis in their final league game of the season, but manager Carlo Ancelotti believes that the Welshman’s contributions over the last nine years won’t be forgotten. Bale will cut his ties with Los Blancos later this summer when his contract runs out, following which he will become a free agent.
“His contract is over, whether he plays tomorrow or not is not important. Bale has been part of the history of this club. Bale is going to remain in the memory of Madrid’s history. He has been important in Champions League finals, of the Cup… It’s normal for everyone to recognize this,”
Ancelotti said.
Rumors emerged earlier this season claiming that Bale was planning on retiring from football should Wales fail to make it to the 2022 FIFA World Cup. However, were the Dragons to qualify for the finals, the Welshman would join a club temporarily to maintain match fitness until the tournament rolls around in November. Championship side Cardiff City are linked with a shock move for the Wales national team captain, a rumor which his agent Jonathan Barnett refuses to rule out.
“We’ll look and see in due course. But I repeat there are no options on the table at the moment. Cardiff has a lot of plusses. He’s from Wales, his family are from there. From a personal point of view it could appeal.”
Barnett said, referencing the touted Cardiff interest.
Bale is originally from Cardiff, the city he left to enter the Southampton academy in 1999. The winger came through the Saints’ ranks before joining Tottenham in 2007. Six years later, he was on his way to the Spanish capital in a then-world record move to Real Madrid – which brought him three league and four Champions League titles.
