Speaking recently on The Athletic’s The View From The Lane podcast, Charlie Eccleshare discussed Gareth Bale’s return from injury and in which match he believes the Welshman will make his second debut for Tottenham Hotspur.
After leaving Spurs to join Real Madrid back in 2013, in what was then a world record £85.3 million deal, Bale went on to feature 251 times for Los Blancos, scoring 105 goals and providing 68 assists along the way.
However, following a season in which the 31-year-old made just 16 La Liga appearances for Madrid, as well as reports of the Welshman having a broken relationship with Real manager Zinedine Zidane, the Spanish side made it clear that Bale was free to leave the club over the summer transfer window.
Tottenham jumped at the chance to re-sign their former player, landing him on a one-year loan deal, with confirmation of the fact that Bale would once again be pulling on a Spurs shirt coming in mid-September.
However, the £25.2 million-rated man is yet to make an appearance since his return to the club, as an injury picked up while on international duty has ruled him out of action until after the next international break, which runs from 7th October until 15th October.
His return to the side was one topic of conversation on a recent episode of The View From The Lane podcast, with Eccleshare discussing in which fixture Bale could make his second debut for the club.
When asked whether the West Ham United game, scheduled for 17th October, could be the fixture in which Bale makes his return, Eccleshare said:
“Currently, yes. That’s been earmarked as a possibility, so lots to look forward to.
“I get the feeling for [Jose] Mourinho and for Tottenham it’s really going to feel like a staggering to the end of this week, and you just hope you get through without too many knocks.
“Then you’re praying that players don’t go away on international duty and get injured, but yeah, that is the one where hopefully Bale will make his debut and that does just add such another layer of excitement, doesn’t it?”
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TIF Thoughts…
From Eccleshare’s comments, it is clear that the journalist is of the belief that Bale will be back in time for the club’s London derby with West Ham, which means that, after the club’s next two fixtures against Maccabi Haifa and Manchester United, the Welshman could be in the Spurs squad.
Coincidentally, this fixture could also see the return of Heung-min Son, who was recently withdrawn at half time in the club’s draw with Newcastle United, with Mourinho stating that Son would likely make a return to the Spurs squad after the upcoming international break.
As such, 17th October certainly looks like a date to mark in the diary for Spurs fans.