Gareth Bale: "I've loved football since I was a kid, but it's been nice to get away from it a bit. I don't miss it."

Gareth Bale , winner of five Champions Leagues with Real Madrid , scorer of a goal in the Lisbon final and another with a bicycle kick in Kiev , moved away from football after his retirement in 2022, at the age of 33, and has now returned as a commentator for the Club World Cup on DAZN. A time without the ball that, he admits in a chat with EL MUNDO in New York , "has been great". The Welshman, in his first interview in years with a Spanish media outlet, sits down to talk about football, tactics, the calendar, PSG, Xabi Alonso and his Madrid, of which he remains a fan.

What do you think of the Club World Cup?

I think it's turning out to be a great tournament. At first, people weren't entirely sure about it, but now that we're in the final stages, you can see a lot more enthusiasm. We saw it in the semifinal between PSG and Real Madrid, which was a great match, and now we have a very interesting final between PSG and Chelsea.

You're commentating on the tournament on DAZN. Do you enjoy it? Did you imagine this when you were playing?

I'm enjoying it. I don't think I'm a commentator as such; I just give my opinion. And I'm enjoying it. It's good to get back to football a bit after several years away, and it's a good way to do it. I enjoy watching the games and giving my opinions.

Do you miss football?

Mmmm... No (laughs). I don't miss it.

Do you still enjoy watching it?

Yes, yes. I enjoy watching the big games. For example, the PSG-Madrid match or the last Champions League final. Things like that. I've loved football since I was a kid, and that's something that never goes away, but it's been nice to step away for a bit to watch it as a fan.

As a former footballer who gives his opinion on television, do you try to be careful when talking about players because of how those words might affect them?

No. I always try to think about what I would like people to say about me if I were on the pitch. Plus, there are always reasons why you might make a mistake or why you're not playing well that people don't know about. A lot of people make comments in the moment but don't see beyond that, what might be happening at home, what the coach is asking you to do, or the different tactics the team is using that no one knows about. I always try to give the benefit of the doubt and give a reason why I think they're not doing well. I try not to be too negative because a lot of people do try that just to get clickbait and advance their professional careers. I just try to give an honest opinion and protect the players a little.

What did you think of PSG's 4-0 win over Real Madrid?

It's a wide scoreline, but I think if Madrid hadn't made those mistakes at the start, the game would have been different. Without those mistakes, which they don't make in perhaps 99 out of 100 matches, it would have been different. And once you're 2-0 down against a great team, it becomes complicated. You have to change the pace of the game and take more risks to come back, which ultimately leads to losing. It was already a difficult game for Madrid at 0-0, but at 2-0 down, it was even more so. Anyway, when you're in a knockout stage, I think it doesn't matter if you lose 4-0 or 1-0; you're still going home. I think they did the logical thing by trying to attack more, but it didn't work.

PSG looks like the best team in Europe right now.

I think everyone is enjoying watching PSG. They have a very interesting way of playing football, with high pressure, intensity, and young players. They're not superstars, they're a team. And they're by far the best team in Europe right now. If they win the World Cup, they'll be the best team in the world.

There's been a lot of talk about high pressure at this World Cup. Do you think football has changed? It's become less about the stars and more about the coach and the team.

Yes. I think it depends more on what the coaches do than the stars. It's more of a game of chess. The sport has evolved, without a doubt. Coaches have always changed the game. I think in my era, Pep Guardiola was the first to really change it, and now Luis Enrique has perhaps put a new spin on what he did. It's a different sport now than it was, and it's even more of a team sport.

It seems like an era of PSG dominance has begun. Do you see Madrid capable of recovering?

Yes. I think what PSG is doing is great; they're in great form, but you can never write off Real Madrid. They're always going to be dangerous and always one step away from becoming a great team again. I think now, with Xabi Alonso in charge and giving him some time, and seeing what he did at Bayer Leverkusen, I'm sure he can turn Real Madrid into a winning team again. Of course, I'm a Real Madrid fan, so I hope they can win more next season. I'm sure Xabi will do everything he can to make that happen.

Did you see Xabi as a coach when you played together?

I always thought so. He was passionate about football, and I think that in this day and age, you need to be obsessed with football to be a coach, to live and breathe the sport. And he's in that category. You can see the great work he did at Leverkusen; he won the league against the team that had dominated it for so many years. It was an extraordinary achievement with a smaller budget. It showed what a great coach he is. I'm sure he'll prove it at Madrid in time, too.

Do you think Madrid needs to be a team and less about individuals?

Yes, and I'm sure he will. Xabi has only been with the team for four weeks and needs time. After seeing what he did at Leverkusen, he'll certainly try to get the stars to work for the team while showing their individual quality.

Luka Modric has played his last game for Real Madrid. You played with him at Tottenham and the Bernabéu. How much did you help each other?

I thoroughly enjoyed playing alongside him. I think he's the player I've played the most matches with. He's had an incredible career, but all good things come to an end, and age eventually catches up with you. It was incredible to play with him; we praised each other a lot on the pitch, and I think that's why we played so well together.

I ask him about the schedule. Are there too many games?

Yes. There's too much football. From the players' point of view, it's a little worrying that they won't be able to rest. We'll see what impact it will have on the players, if there will be more injuries or what. Maybe something needs to happen and the schedule needs to be improved, but right now there's so much money being made from football that they're creating more tournaments and more games. Hopefully, things will calm down a bit over time, that there'll be a slightly better schedule, and that the players will have a little more time to recover and rest. Right now, it's just too much.