Graeme Souness joined Friday's OTB AM to discuss all things football, including the fraught relationship between Gareth Bale and Zinedine Zidane.
The Welsh international was not included in Real Madrid's travelling party for Friday's Champions League last-16 second leg away to Manchester City. However, Zidane revealed that the omission was Bale's choice.
"Bale will hate himself for it down the road," Souness said.
"These are arguably the best years of his playing career. This is when he should be at his peak. You think of the goals he’s capable of scoring, his quality, his speed and his power."
The former Liverpool captain explained that if you ask most professional footballers, they'll tell you that their career went by too fast.
"It goes too quickly. It’s over in a flash. You’d love to go and live it all again, the good and the bad," he said.
"He [Bale] will think that one day."
Souness outlined how he sees the relationship between Bale and Zidane.
"I think Zidane made his mind up early that he doesn’t fancy him. There’s obviously something about him that Zidane doesn’t like," he said.
"There’s something in his attitude and it has to be his attitude that the manager who is one of the greats of all time just doesn’t like."
Money of course comes into the equation when we consider the size of Bale's salary in Madrid.
"I think the top and bottom of the story is that he’s getting that much money at Real and the lifestyle suits him, so he’s prepared to dig his heels," Souness said.
"He’ll want to be paid off if he’s going to leave. Real Madrid have said not a chance and they’re at loggerheads over it. It’s simply down to money."
Souness explained that he could never have done what Bale is doing at the moment.
"Someone who’s prepared just to sit there and take the money. Take the flack from the supporters and just be happy not playing," he said.
"He’s not the first one to find himself in this situation. But, I know that I couldn’t do it, I’d just want to play."
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