Gareth Bale will not be enjoying bench duty at Totteham, says Jamie Redknapp, but he says the Welshman does not do the “hard yards” required to make Jose Mourinho's starting XI.
Spurs threw open their doors to a familiar face over the summer when it became apparent that an eventful stint at Real Madrid was ending.
Bale had been frozen out in Spain, and regular rounds of transfer talk eventually delivered a season-long loan back to north London.
The 31-year-old was always going to need time in which to rediscover his best form, while hopes of him emulating efforts from his previous stint at Tottenham look optimistic.
Bale has been filling a support role so far, with Mourinho keeping him among the substitutes for the 2-0 derby win over Arsenal, and Redknapp says a man who was once the most expensive player on the planet may have to rein his ego in and make peace with the fact that he is not starting material.
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The former Spurs midfielder told Sky Sports: “I'm almost undermining an incredible player, one of the best players I've ever seen live, Gareth Bale. The things he's done for Real Madrid and for Tottenham. There was a spell when he was unplayable.
"Right now, Jose thinks he's not the player he needs in this team.
“This team has to work to a man, and Gareth might just upset that balance and not quite do those hard yards if you like.
“That feels a bit unfair on him because he's probably watching now thinking 'how am I going to get in this team? If I am going to get in, the only way I can do it, is by working hard and showing in training that when I come on, I make an impact.'
“Make no mistake, Gareth Bale will have a role and he will score a couple of wonderful goals here before the end of the season, but I can't imagine he's too happy about sitting on the bench.
“I can't imagine a player of his stature can be enjoying not being involved and not even coming on. We've all got egos as players.”
Bale has played just 116 minutes of Premier League football so far in four appearances, with the vast majority of his game time coming in the Europa League.