Gareth Bale has a number problem after returning to Real Madrid following his Tottenham loan spell.
The Welshman spent last season on loan with Spurs where he wore the number nine, but during his absence from the Spanish capital, Marco Asensio snapped up his beloved number 11.
Bale had worn the number 11 throughout his time for Real Madrid, through all of his 13 titles.
But upon his return ahead of this season, the final campaign of his contract, Bale faces wearing new digits.
And as Diario AS have pointed out, the only number free is 16, which was vacated by Luka Jovic when he went out on loan last season.
Though, it’s also noted that Casemiro could take up his national team number in number five given Raphael Varane’s impending exit, meaning Bale and the returning Dani Ceballos could have 14 and 16 to choose from.
For the moment, though, it’s 16 or a digit from the late 20s or 30s for Bale, who is likely to struggle to convince Asensio to give his beloved 11 back.
Meanwhile, Martin Odegaard and Jovic, who also spent time out on loan last season, are also looking for new numbers, but they wore the numbers 21 and 18 respectively in the friendly against Rangers, perhaps providing a big clue over their new digits.
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