Europe 1 with AFP 8:25 p.m., January 9, 2023

At 33, the Welsh winger, after announcing his international retirement, has just formalized the end of his career.

The Welshman, winner of five Champions League with Real Madrid, will also have won three Liga with the Merengue club.

Memorable scorer with a recognizable bun, the Welshman Gareth Bale, star of his country, announced Monday his "immediate retirement from football", in club as in selection at the age of 33.

Leaving Real Madrid at the end of his contract in July 2022, the striker had rebounded at Los Angeles FC, in particular to maintain his physical condition for the 2022 World Cup which unfortunately was a fiasco. 

pic.twitter.com/QF7AogJXHE

— Gareth Bale (@GarethBale11) January 9, 2023

At the time of closing the trophy cabinet definitively, one thing is obvious: it is in Madrid that Bale has won the most (fifteen titles).

During his nine seasons in the Madrid capital, the native of Cardiff won three Ligas (2017, 2020, 2022), a Spanish Cup (2014) and, therefore, five Champions Leagues (2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2022).

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Beautiful hours of Real Madrid

Bale's bursts in the white jersey, Real fans probably remember his performance in the Champions League final in 2018, when he scored twice against Liverpool (3-1), gratifying in particular the public at the kyiv Olympic Stadium with a fabulous acrobatic kick.

Attacker often positioned on the right, he formed, with Cristiano Ronaldo on the left, the two wings of the Madrid eagle which flew over European football for the last ten years.

Accompanied by Karim Benzema at the forefront, this raptor had a name: the "BBC".

Before that, Bale had impressed Premier League fans in the Tottenham jersey (2007-2013 then 2020-2021 on loan), piling up the spectacular and solitary goals until pushing the Madrid club to buy him for 101 million euros. euros, an absolute record at the time.

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The best Welshman in history?

But the most beautiful moments of his 17-season long career, Gareth Bale has undoubtedly experienced them in selection.

Adored in Wales, the player trained in Southampton (south of England) concluded his career with the red jersey struck by the dragon at the 2022 World Cup. Both top scorer and most capped player (111 caps, 41 goals) in the history of the Welsh selection, he managed to bring his country back to the World Cup, 64 years after his last qualification for the planetary tournament.

Beyond the numbers, Bale was a leader respected by his teammates.

"We really have a very close-knit team. Any young player who joins the team sees that Gareth has no ego, he laughs... and I think everyone should be like that," said the midfielder Jonny Williams before the start of the World Cup.

In an open letter to his "Welsh family", the native of Cardiff also admitted that ending his international career had been "the hardest decision (...) of his career, by far".

"My journey on the international stage has not only changed my life but also who I am," he said: "The chance to be Welsh and selected to play and captain Wales has given me something. incomparable to anything I've been through."

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A continuous decline

In selection, Bale had taken his country to the semi-finals of Euro 2016 before losing against Portugal, final winner (2-0).

A high-flying performance for the dragon of Wales, a country of just over three million inhabitants.

But the adventure had to stop for the Welsh captain, far from his best form during the World Cup.

Ironically, it was against the English rival that Bale's career ended, when he was released at half-time from a rout he could not prevent (3-0).

Sometimes heckled by Real fans for his less good performances, his recurring injuries and his propensity to spend more time on golf lawns than football, Bale then found refuge during international breaks.

Provocative, he even allowed himself to establish a clear hierarchy between the loves of his life: "Wales. Golf. Madrid. In that order", could we read on a Welsh flag that he had waved one evening qualifying for Euro 2020.

After a year-long freelance at Tottenham (2020-2021) then a last season almost without playing at Real, Bale had gone into exile in California to regain good physical condition ahead of the World Cup, at Los Angeles FC.

With the key to an ultimate MLS championship title.