Gareth Bale not worried by Real Madrid criticism, proclaims Ryan Giggs

The former Tottenham man has struggled immensely over the last few years but has produced good performances for the Los Blancos albeit sporadically. That saw him heavily linked with a move away over the summer with a move to China falling apart in the eleventh hour. However, since then, the 30-year-old has struggled to hit his best for the La Liga giants with injuries once again playing an impact.

That combined with his off the field issues has led to suggestions that Bale’s passion for the game has disappeared but Ryan Giggs has refuted that. The Wales manager went on to admit that the Real Madrid superstar is still in love with the game and anything being said about Bale’s passion for the game is nothing more than noise.

"He still very much loves the game and playing it; loves winning, loves scoring goals, loves making goals. It's all noise you can't control and it's about blocking it out so if you don't hear it then it's not going to affect you. Gareth (Bale) is at one of the biggest clubs in the world, he's won four Champions Leagues, he's won everything so he can handle it (the criticism)," Giggs told Sky Sports News.

The Wales boss himself has been under immense pressure but qualification to this summer’s Euro 2020 has alleviated some pressure on the Manchester United legend. However, with this being one of the Welsh’s greatest group of players, Giggs believes that they can achieve so much more with the 46-year-old looking to qualify for the 2020 World Cup next.

"In the summer, I was the worst manager in the world - that was only six months ago. Now, people look at me differently - things change and they will do again, it's a rollercoaster. I wanted to manage Wales to get them to the Euros but also, ultimately, to get them to the World Cup and that's my immediate future past the Euros. The last time we were at a World Cup was 1958 so I want to get this set of players to the World Cup," Giggs added.