Real Madrid winger Gareth Bale has said he doesn’t feel he has anything left to prove and discussed what it meant to win the Champions League.
Bale has been interviewed by BT Sport for a programme documenting his first season in La Liga, with the transcript of the interview published in the British and Spanish Press.
Asked if he was under pressure to show he deserves to be a Madrid player, Bale insisted that he didn’t, arguing that his career speaks for itself.
“For me personally I think if I just play my football then hopefully they will be satisfied so, I didn’t feel like I had to do anything extra special to prove myself,” the Wales international said.
“I feel like I’ve done that in previous seasons at Tottenham, and hopefully last season as well.
“It was a good first season. To win the 10th Champions League for Madrid was obviously a big target for everybody at the club and for me personally to do it in my first season was a dream come true.
“Obviously the Copa del Rey is another major trophy which is always great to win.
“I think for me, I knew I was going to the biggest club in the world, and I fully believed that if I played my football then I’d contribute well enough and thankfully that happened last season.
“The club had been chasing [the Champions League] for I think 12 years and it was a reason they brought me in – to try and make the team stronger to win that Champions League, and to do it in my first season was a dream come true. Not just for me but for everybody.”
Bale was asked what Madrid are aiming for this season, having conquered Europe last year, and he replied that retaining the trophy has to be the goal.
“I think the Champions League is always special to any player and a club like Madrid, as I said, is known for its big European nights and winning the Champions League so I would probably say that it’s our biggest target,” he continued.
“We want to win every trophy as well. That’s something that we’re obviously looking forward to, that we’re excited about, and it’s what we’ll be working hard all season to try and do.”
