Zidane questions Bale's 'enormous' price
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E-mail Xinhua, September 9, 2013
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Gareth Bale poses with Real Madrid president Florentino Perez during his presentation event at Santiago Bernabeu Stadium. |
Real Madrid assistant coach Zinedine Zidane has expressed his surprise at the amount of money the club paid to sign Gareth Bale from Tottenham Hotspurs.
Although Real Madrid sources say the club paid 91 million euros, Tottenham say that Real Madrid agreed to pay just over 100 million euros for the player, who was officially presented to the fans and the press a week ago.
Speaking on French TV station, Canal+, Zidane, who is close to Madrid president, Florentino Perez didn't deny that the club had paid the higher figure for Bale, but questioned the wisdom of paying so much money for a footballer.
Zidane was for a while the most expensive player in the world, joining Madrid for a fee of around 75 million euros and establishing himself as one of the heroes of the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.
"I admitted that I was not worth 75 million euros and today I feel the same way: that no player is worth that. It is incomprehensible with all that is happening today that two clubs pay such a high price," he said in words which may not have gone down well with Perez.
"Two clubs agree a price without feeling forced to do so. Sadly that is the way football is," said the Frenchman.
Having been the most expensive player in the world, Zidane had some advice for Bale, who very clearly is going to under the spotlight when he returns to Spain.
"Bale understands the impact of his arrival: he is coming to the best club in the world and he is doing so with this enormous transfer fee. I lived through that and for the first three months it was very difficult and I even wondered if the best thing was to leave, but if you concentrate on what happens on the pitch, things happen more naturally and my job is to tell him to play as he knows how and not to pressure him," he said.
Meanwhile Real Madrid have an injury worry after left back, Marcelo tore a thigh muscle while playing for Brazil on Friday. Tests have shown that Marcelo will be out of action for three to six weeks, which means Fabio Coentrao, who was close to joining Manchester United on the last day of the transfer window, will probably get his chance to shine.
Meanwhile Isco has returned to the club from the Spain squad after suffering a slight ankle injury which shouldn't keep him out of Saturday's trip to play in Villarreal.
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