Sculptor strikes again with bronze Bale

THE sculptor who made the now legendary Cristiano Ronaldo bust has tried his hand at creating Gareth Bale.

The Ronaldo statue hit the headlines in March after its unveiling at the Madeira Airport bearing the Portuguese star’s name. It drew some fairly unfavourable comparisons on social media, with some people saying it looked like former Sunderland and Man City striker Niall Quinn.

But sculptor Emanuel Santos has been recommissioned by bookmaker Paddy Power. He’s tried to capture Ronaldo’s Real Madrid teammate and Wales superstar Bale – with more successful results. The bust was unveiled outside the Cardiff branch of Paddy Power on St Mary Street yesterday ahead of Saturday’s Uefa Champions League final. It captures Bale’s famous long hair and stubble and has the writing “Gareth Bale, by Emanuel Santos, sculptor (yes, him again)” underneath.

Bale is still battling to prove he’s fit enough to start the game, but sculptor Santos is satisfied with his work this time around.

“I’m very happy,” he said. “I feel very proud of it. For me, it’s an honour to make Gareth Bale because he’s a great player.”

The sculpture marks Bale’s historic homecoming to Cardiff as he targets a third Champions League winners’ medal.

It took 264 hours to complete, weighs 40kg and is worth around £25,000 if the Bale family want to take it home.

It took Santos a week to mould Bale’s head and the statue weighs much more than Ronaldo’s – it is the same size – because of Bale’s extra hair.

Bale hasn’t seen the statue yet but Santos says it embodies the “Welsh spirit, warrior and energy” of Cardiff’s favourite footballer.