Gareth Bale Settles the Debate by Answering Who Was Faster at Real Madrid — Him or Cristiano Ronaldo?

Gareth Bale was one of the fastest players in the world in his prime, and it was one of the key qualities that Real Madrid signed him for. At the Santiago Bernabéu, he faced Cristiano Ronaldo, and the Welshman has now revealed who was faster between them.

Gareth Bale Settles Speed Debate With Cristiano Ronaldo

Bale was in scintillating form at Tottenham when Real Madrid decided he was a player they needed. They paid a then-record $110 million fee to sign him from the Premier League side, despite heavy interest from Manchester United.

The Welshman teamed up with Cristiano Ronaldo on the wings, forming one of the best partnerships and certainly the fastest. The two played 157 matches together for Los Blancos, combining for 41 goals while winning the league title twice and the UEFA Champions League four times together.

Bale was on The Overlap’s “Stick To Football” podcast this week, when he was quizzed about who the faster player was at Real Madrid. The former Spurs winger quickly said that Ronaldo would not agree, but the Welshman was quicker. “Cristiano would argue otherwise, as he would. But I would like to think, yes [I was the quickest in the Real Madrid team].”

The former winger also spoke about the incredible trio they formed at Real Madrid alongside Karim Benzema. The Frenchman was a key figure as they collected titles in almost every season, but Bale believes that he did not get the credit he deserved.

He added that the Al-Hilal striker was the glue that held them together on the pitch. He claimed that the Frenchman was the focal point on the pitch for their moves, and said:

MORE: Gareth Bale Explains Why He Rejected Manchester United Transfer Despite Them Offering More Than Real Madrid To Buy Him

“When I went there, it was maybe like the final piece of the jigsaw for that team. We had a bit more balance and then the positions worked perfectly with Cristiano on the left, me on the right and Karim being the real number nine. Cristiano is there taking the headlines a lot. I came for a big fee, Benzema came really young but he didn’t come for this massive fee and kind of built into it from there.”

Gareth Bale called time on his career in 2023 after a spell at LAFC and a loan back at Tottenham. Meanwhile, Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema continue playing, but have moved to the Saudi Pro League.