Bale chases hometown final
Winning the Champions League in Cardiff Real(ly) drives Welsh winger
REAL Madrid winger Gareth Bale said yesterday he has an extra incentive to reach a third Champions League final in four years because the title game will be played in his hometown of Cardiff.
“This is the reason I came to Madrid – to play in the Champions League, to win the Champions League,” the 27-year-old Bale said.
“To have the Champions League final in my home town is an even bigger motivation,” he said.
The Wales international helped Real beat Atletico Madrid on penalties to march to their 11th European title and his second with the club in the 2015/16 campaign before playing for his country at Euro 2016.
“Two in three years is an amazing achievement,” he said. “Now we want to look to the next one.”
Injuries limited Bale to 30 appearances in all competitions for Real last season but the former Tottenham star still scored 19 goals and provided 10 assists.
Bale is on a 10-man shortlist for Uefa’s Best Player in Europe award. The winner will be announced today in Monaco during the 2016/17 Champions League draw.
“It was an incredible season, especially topping it off by winning the Champions League and then going on to the Euro and doing an amazing job with Wales,” he said. “They were two great moments in my career, in my life.”
Wales made it to the semifinals before falling to eventual champions Portugal in July.
Bale has had a strong start in his fourth season with Real, scoring twice in his team’s 3-0 win at Real Sociedad in their La Liga opener on Sunday.
Meanwhile Neymar should return to Spain with renewed enthusiasm after leading Brazil to their first soccer gold medal at an Olympic Games, Barcelona defender Gerard Pique said.
Neymar, who has scored 85 goals in 141 games in his three seasons at Barcelona, was given permission to stay in Brazil until after international games early next month.
“I think it’s a good decision to grant him (Neymar) that,” Pique said. “He has earned it.
“I’m sure he is very happy and will come with a lot of enthusiasm to Barcelona.”
Neymar scored the winning penalty in a shoot-out against Germany in Saturday’s gold medal game at the Maracana stadium in Rio and then stepped down as Brazil captain, a position he had held since September 2014.
“It has been a difficult tournament for him,” Pique said.
“To play at home means you have the pressure to win but Ney (Neymar) is accustomed to that. He has proved why he is one of the best in the world by scoring that penalty.”
Neymar has been away since May 23 after helping his club to win a La Liga and King’s Cup double last season.
He is set to play for Brazil in 2018 World Cup qualifiers after being named in new coach Tite’s squad.
Brazil take on Ecuador in Quito on September 1 and five days later host Colombia in Manaus with the national team currently sixth in their South American group, outside the qualifying positions.
Barcelona decided against recalling Neymar for this Sunday’s La Liga game to cut down on his flights. COOL UNDER PRESSURE: Neymar of Brazil scores the winning penalty kick against Timo Horn of Germany in the gold medal match of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at Maracana Stadium on Saturday.