Gareth Bale Explains Why English Clubs Struggle In Europe
REUTERS/Javier Barbancho
Real Madrid superstar Gareth Bale has claimed that a lack of winter break is the reason why English clubs struggle on the European stage.
Having spent 6 seasons in the Premier League with Tottenham Hotspur, Gareth Bale parted ways with the London-based outfit to secure a move to the Spanish capital, joining Real Madrid for a then record transfer fee of £85m.
He has since been immensely successful with the La Liga club, with his greatest achievement so far being winning the Champions League on two occasions.
And now, after having spent a considerable amount of time in two of Europe’s best leagues, the talented Welshman has revealed the difference between the two.
The 27-year-old stated (via Mirror): “In every game in the Premier League you have to be at 100 per cent for 90 minutes or you will lose.
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“In Spain, you can be up at half-time against the bottom club and you can take your foot off the gas. You can rest players and take people off. If you only try for 45 minutes you won’t win a match in the Premier League. Obviously, we still play but it’s not at the same 110 per cent intensity. I think it’s a big reason.
“On any given day, 20th can beat top in the Premier League. Here, not so much. It’s a bigger gap. But the top six or seven here are really, really strong. In terms of the whole league, the Premier League is by far the most competitive but the teams that perform in Europe are mainly from Spain, Germany or Italy.”
Bale also spoke about the reason why most English clubs struggle in Europe, by claiming: “Obviously, the winter break is massive. In England, you’ll play four or five games when we don’t play any. You don’t get many rest days and it really does burn you out for a long time after that.”