Former Welsh football star Gareth Bale has revealed the bitter truth that haunted him throughout his career. He admitted that he played for years while suffering from a chronic back injury that he kept out of the public eye. Ultimately, this injury was the main reason behind his retirement from football at the age of 33. Bale, who was a contemporary of legends Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi during the peak of the Real Madrid vs. Barcelona rivalry, said on the 'Stick to Football' podcast that his back problems began when he was 18, but he chose to continue playing despite the pain. 'I sometimes needed injections to ease the pain, and I was constantly working on strengthening my leg muscles, but the problem was that I didn't know when the injury might get worse,' he said. Bale had announced his retirement in January 2023 after a short stint with Los Angeles FC in the American league, at a time when the public expected more from him than he delivered in his football career, especially given his immense technical, physical, and speed abilities. However, he often came across as a 'glass player' who was prone to injuries, which kept him away from the spotlight, along with moments of indifference he showed while playing for Real Madrid. Gareth Bale is considered one of the prominent names in world football and is respected by the Welsh public, having led his national team to a historic achievement by reaching the semi-finals of Euro 2016 and helping them qualify for the 2022 World Cup after a 64-year absence from the global stage.
