Gareth Bale has confirmed that he will not come out of retirement to play for Wrexham despite owners’ Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds’ pressure.
Bale, who retired from football following last year’s World Cup, said it was the ‘the hardest (decision) of his career’, as he hung his boots after scoring over 200 goals for club and country.
He has also scored a record 41 goals for Wales which makes him one of the greatest Welsh players of all time.
There have been series of attempt to lure the 33-year-old out of retirement to play football again for at least a year recently.
Bale sent a congratulatory message to the team after Wrexham won promotion from the National League last weekend.
As Bale replied, it sent hundreds of Wrexham fans into frenzy, then Ryan Reynolds quickly joined in the conversation to try and convince the Welshman to join the club.
Ryan, a renowned Canadian actor, posted a picture of the former Tottenham and Real Madrid winger in a Wrexham shirt with the caption ‘what if…,’ but Bale have rebutted a possible return.
Gareth Bale was asked if he misses football after he received an Outstanding Contribution to Sport Award at the FEVO Sport Industry Awards 2023.
But the Welshman responded “No” with a laugh and added “I’m enjoying my time away. I started at a young age and felt the time was right.”
He was further asked about the speculation surrounding his return to football and signing for Wrexham after they were promoted.
He replied, saying; “No I don’t think so, I was more looking for a free round of golf off Rob!”
Rob McElhenney – Wrexham co-owner – initially wanted to lure the Welshman by playing golf with him as he tweeted that he would not spend the whole day trying to persuade the former Madrid attacker to ‘un-retire for one magical season’.
Bale went on to say; “I’m sure we’ll have a chat and a joke but I’m quite happy where I am. Spending a lot of time with my kids, my wife, time that I’ve lost so much of over the years being committed to football. I’m just enjoying family life and playing some golf.”
Though it seems very unlikely for Bale to come out of retirement, he is always seen in the stands during international games.
Should Bale come out of retirement for Wrexham, he would not be the first as ex-Premier League goalkeeper Ben Foster was also tempted out of retirement for a short spell.
And Ben Forster played a vital role in ensuring the club got over the line in their promotion push, after he made a vital last-minute penalty save in their 3-2 win over nearest rivals Notts County.
Though Foster was phenomenon for the newly promoted team, it is uncertain if he would continue to play for the team next year in League Two.
Gareth Bale
Gareth Frank Bale MBE is a Welsh former footballer who was born on 16 July 1989 and played as a winger, most notably for Tottenham Hotspur and Real Madrid.
Bale is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of his generation and one of the greatest Welsh players of all time.
Bale enjoyed a successful career at Real Madrid when he transferred to the Los Blancos in 2013 for an undisclosed fee, which was confirmed to be a then world-record transfer fee of £85.1 million (€100.8 million).
He was part of the subsequent trio dubbed BBC, playing alongside Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema, Bale helped Madrid to win the 2013–14 Copa del Rey and UEFA Champions League, scoring in both finals.
Why Did Bale Retire So Early?
This brought about several questions as to why the Welshman retire so early in his career when that age was somewhat a peak age.
The former Real Madrid and Tottenham star retired as one of the legends of the game and one of the greatest Welsh players of all-time.
Bale announced his decision of early retirement in an emotional statement on his social media account.
His retirement decision was somewhat shocking because the winger had only recently joined Major League Soccer club Los Angeles FC at that time.
It was assumed then that frequent injuries was the major reason why Bale retired at an early age.
However, the Wales forward did not clearly state the reason that made him to bow to retirement at that point of his career.
The incessant injuries reduced his playing time, fitness level and this pushed him down the pecking order and prompted a loan move back to Tottenham.
After the loan move to his former club from Real Madrid, Bale then signed for Los Angeles where he started for MLS side in just 13 appearances.
Bale’s highlight of his career as a professional was winning the Champions League titles 5 times and three La Liga trophies in his time at Real Madrid.
The Welshman was also a vital part of Zinedine Zidane’s Real Madrid side that won three successful Champions League titles.
