DON’T BALE OUT
Rush tells star to snub United and reign in Spain
IAN RUSH has told fellow Wales legend Gareth Bale to ignore Manchester United’s overtures to bring the Real Madrid star back to the Premier League.
United boss Jose Mourinho and the country’s other title-chasing clubs have all been placed on red alert over the 28-year-old forward.
The Champions League holders are moving in on a £160million deal for Monaco’s Kylian Mbappe, and Bernabeu sources indicate that Bale could be sacrificed to help fund the astronomical deal.
Bale is due to face Manchester United in the UEFA Super Cup on Tuesday night in Macedonia. But Rush believes that is as close to United as Bale should go.
He said: “If he’s happy then Gareth should stay in Spain, 100 per cent. He has improved as a player. He’s got great players like Cristiano Ronaldo to keep learning from. There are not many better clubs in the world than Real Madrid.
“I know that if he decided to come to England he would have the choice of all the top clubs here. Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool would all want him.
“There’s always a time and a place to come back but I don’t think it should be now. He is still relatively young.”
Rush (right) also feels Bale’s game would be affected by the demands of the Premier League. The former Liverpool star, 55, added: “The demands are the hardest in the world. The reason why English clubs haven’t been doing well in Europe in recent seasons is because of this. “The Premier League is so tough. There are no games in which you can switch on the cruise control. Real Madrid and Barcelona can rest players in certain games and still win. You can’t do that in England so the season is a real grind. “Gareth is able to fine tune his game in Spain. He is rested at times but if he came back to England, say for Manchester United, he would be playing week-in, week-out. “Also there’s every chance that Real Madrid, who have won the Champions League two seasons running, will at least reach the semi-finals and final again. You can’t say that with any certainty about any English club Gareth joins.”
Rush also knows it would be a blow to leave Ronaldo behind.
He said: “I’ve seen huge improvements in Gareth’s game.
“He is stronger physically, he is a better header of the ball. Look at Ronaldo when he heads the ball – now you can see similarities in Gareth’s technique. They are both devastating in the air.
“Unless he was really unhappy there’s no advantage in coming back home.” ■■Ian Rush is a patron of the Shabra charity which is raising money for DNA gene testing machines. More details on ianrush9.co.uk and www.shabracharity.com