Gareth Bale and Jose Mourinho did not get along, at least that’s what it seemed like.

Gareth Bale has more goals and assists in the Premier League this season than Steven Bergwijn, Erik Lamela, Lucas Moura, and Giovani Lo Celso. Yet, he has received fewer minutes than all of them.

Now, with Ryan Mason in charge, it seems like Bale is back to the starting lineup. The 31-year-old got the nod against Southampton in the midweek and repaid Mason’s faith in him with a goal. Bale was also awarded man of the match.

Gareth Bale was a key figure in Spurs 2-1 comeback win against Southampton. PC: Michael Lee

Under Jose Mourinho however, Bale was used as the scapegoat for the disastrous performances against Arsenal and Dinamo Zagreb. Admittedly, Bale did not play well in those games and showed little motivation.

Yet still, Bale is the club’s third top scorer. So yes, every once in a while, he will drop a stinker but doesn’t everyone? Heung-Min Son went seven games without scoring a goal in the league but is still widely considered an elite player.

Also, the other players who would fill in at right-wing haven’t had the most consistent seasons either. Assuming Lucas Moura is a CAM that leaves Erik Lamela (1 goal in the EPL), Steven Bergwijn (2 assists in the EPL), and Gio Lo Celso (1 goal and 1 assist in the EPL) to fill in. Bale by comparison has 6 goals and 2 assists, in only 7 starts!

So what reason would Jose have to bench the Welshman? The only thing that makes sense is that their egos didn’t match up or that Jose needed to blame someone for the shambolic displays and chose Bale.

Something worth noting is back in January Spurs posted a training video. In the background of the video, you could make out Jose Mourinho saying “Do you want to play football? Or do you want to go back to Madrid and not play?”

This could have foreshadowed Bale and Mourinho’s falling out. Or it could simply be the case of Mourinho using a fall guy to try to cover the team’s performances.

Either way, Bale is now back with the starting squad and is expected to start the Carabao Cup Final tomorrow against Man City. If Spurs have any chance of winning Bale will need to be at the top of his game!