Klinsmann advises Bale to leave Real Madrid: "He's wasting his time"

In comments given to 'talkSPORT 2's Sportsday', Jurgen Klinsmann has given his opinion on Gareth Bale's situation at Real Madrid. 

The Welsh striker's contract runs until 2022, but Zidane does not count on him: "Being on the bench is the worst punishment for a player. Time goes very quickly and as a player you can't waste it. The most important thing for any footballer is to be on the pitch and playing. When that doesn't happen, sooner rather than later, you have to come to the conclusion and consider a move."

Klinsmann did not hesitate is making it clear to the attacker that it is important to fight for a place in the starting XI: "There's a point in time when you become a professional player in which you would like to earn a decent amount of money that you can put to one side to feel a bit more safe. But once that goal is achieved, only one thing that matters : playing and scoring goals and building your playing record. 

"You want to leave the game one day in your 30s and say ‘OK, look at my career there, I managed to score in X amount of teams and X amount of goals in different competitions."

And he added: "Money doesn’t matter anymore. Money has no influence on that decision right now that Gareth has to make, but there are personal elements to it. There is family and lifestyle things to consider.

Finally, he made clear that he would love to see Bale return to the Premier League: "A player like him, we would like to admire him week in, week out on the television. As a Tottenham fan, I would love him to come back to Spurs," he concluded.