Jose Mourinho believes anyone wondering why it took Gareth Bale so long to hit top form for Tottenham would be better off asking Real Madrid.
Bale had a miserable start to his Tottenham return after coming back to the club on a season-long loan deal in September.
He struggled with his form and fitness, quickly falling out of favour with Mourinho.
Bale has been revitalised of late though, impressing in two Europa League games against Wolfsberger as well as Premier League clashes against West Ham and Burnley.
Mourinho recently said Bale was the happiest, fittest and most confident he has ever been at Tottenham.
The Spurs boss confirmed Bale had another good reaction to his 70-minute outing in the 4-0 win over Burnley on Sunday.
It means the Wales international is in contention to play at least some part when Spurs take on Fulham at Craven Cottage on Thursday.
"For the past two years, he had what he had in Madrid," said Mourinho. "Ask them [why it took Bale so long to find form].
"Maybe if they answer you, you can understand better why he took a while.
"Maybe to be patient was the main reason for him to reach the level he showed in the last couple of weeks."
Asked if Bale would be involved in the Fulham game, he added: "I believe so. Starting or on the bench I don't know, we have to decide that.
"He is such an experienced guy so of course his opinion is very important. But he has had a good reaction [after the Burnley game], a good recovering session and he will be involved.
"I repeat: [it could be] bench or starting, but he will be there."
Midfielder Giovani Lo Celso will not be rushed back despite returning to training.
"He is training with the team but it was a big injury," added Mourinho.
"We are not going to risk [him] yet. In fact, we don't want to risk [him at all], we want to bring him to the team and competition when there is no risk. One week, two more weeks.
"Apart from that, everyone OK. One more training session after this but everyone OK."
BALE'S SWIFT IMPROVEMENT
Bale has registered four goals and three assists in his last four games for Tottenham.
In his first 16 matches since returning, he only recorded four goals and did not register a single assist.
The 31-year-old's minutes per goal involvement have impressively plummeted from 200.8 in his first 16 matches to one every 28.7 in this most recent four-match span.
Bale is having more of an active role in other areas too. His chances created per 90 minutes are up to 3.1 from just 1.1, while his shot conversion rate is 44.4 per cent, up from 10.5.
It is only a small sample size and two of the matches were against weaker opposition in Wolfsberger, but the signs are encouraging.
The amount of shots he is taking is similar (4 per game compared to 4.3 before), but notably more of Spurs' attacks are coming through Bale.
He has accounted for 22 per cent of Spurs' shots in the last four matches, where before he was responsible for just nine per cent of their attempts in the time he was on the pitch.
HOW DO HIS STATS COMPARE TO REAL MADRID?
The recent burst from Bale means his statistics since returning to Spurs compare favourably to his successful Madrid tenure in a number of categories.
Again, it is worth noting his Spurs figures are from a comparatively small sample size making them more prone to fluctuations – 20 matches compared to 251 in the Spanish capital.
Bale has 11 goal involvements for Spurs (eight goals and three assists) in 1,004 minutes on the pitch, giving him an average of 91 minutes per contribution.
At Madrid, he averaged one every 111 minutes.
Bale also compares favourably when looking solely at minutes per goal (171 at Madrid v 126 at Spurs).
He did, however, win 65 per cent of the games he played in at Madrid, compared to 60 per cent since returning to Spurs, a sign of the difficult season experienced by the London club.
Celtic 3-1 RB Leipzig: Kuhn double inspires Hoops to Champions League fightback
Celtic's Nicolas Kuhn scored twice as the Bhoys fought back to clinch an impressive 3-1 victory over RB Leipzig in the Champions League on Tuesday.
Coming off a goalless draw at Atalanta on matchday three, Celtic recorded their second home win in the Champions League this season, moving up to 13th in the standings on seven points.
They had to do things the hard way, falling behind to Christoph Baumgartner's close-range header after a corner came off Cameron Carter-Vickers in the 23rd minute.
However, Kuhn levelled in the 35th minute with a superb curling effort from the edge of the box, then tapped into an open net for his brace shortly before half-time.
Benjamin Sesko and Baumgartner went close to equalising after the break but Celtic's birthday boy, 38-year-old goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel, pulled off a couple of fine saves before Reo Hatate sealed victory with a close-range finish in the 72nd minute.
Leipzig's wait for a first point in the Champions League this campaign continues, with their chances of reaching the knockout stages fading after four defeats in as many games.
Data Debrief: Celtic flying high
Celtic may have been humiliated in a 7-1 defeat to Borussia Dortmund on matchday two, but that was a mere blip in what has so far been an impressive European campaign.
Their total of seven points is already their most in a Champions League campaign since 2012-13, when they collected 10, while they last netted more goals (currently nine) in a Champions League/European Cup campaign in 1977-78 (13).
Borussia Dortmund 1-0 Sturm Graz: Malen late show extends Champions League home record
Donyell Malen netted an 85th minute winner to hand Borussia Dortmund a narrow 1-0 victory over winless Sturm Graz in the Champions League on Tuesday.
A dominant showing from Nuri Sahin's side made it three wins from four games so far in the competition, moving them up to fourth in the new 36-team league.
Dortmund started brightly at the Westfalenstadion but were unable to find a breakthrough, with Marcel Sabitzer, Maximilian Beier and Serhou Guirassy going close.
They recorded 13 shots in the first half, their most in the opening 45 minutes of a Champions League match without scoring since Opta recorded this data (since 2003-04).
But Sturm Graz offered a threat on the break after the interval, with Jusuf Gazibegovic curling an effort narrowly wide before Mika Biereth missed a header from close range.
However, Dortmund left it late to seal the win as Malen pounced on Emanuel Aiwu's loose pass before being sent through by Guirassy, with the Dutchman rattling the ball beyond
Kjell Scherpen to seal another Champions League home win.
Data Debrief: Home comforts
While Sahin has come under fire for Dortmund's displays away from home, there is no arguing with his record at the Westfalenstadion.
He became the first Dortmund coach since the Bundesliga was founded to win each of his first seven home matches in charge (all competitions), while BVB are now unbeaten in 13 consecutive Champions League home games (W9 D4) - an extended club record.
Malen’s winner was timed at 84:56, Dortmund’s latest winning goal in a Champions League match since Kevin Groskreutz netted against Marseille in December 2013.
Lille 1-1 Juventus: French side's resistance broken after second-half penalty
Lille held firm to hold Juventus to a 1-1 draw at home on Tuesday in the Champions League, extending their unbeaten run to nine matches.
Jonathan David had fired the French club ahead in the first half, before Dusan Vlahovic scored a second-half penalty to level things up and leave both sides on seven points after four matches.
Things didn't start well for the home side, with Teun Koopmeiners thinking he had scored the opener for Juventus only for it to be disallowed for offside.
David put Lille ahead just three minutes later with their first chance of note in the match. The Canadian turned home to convert from a slick counter-attacking move.
Goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier had to be on form to keep the home side ahead before half-time, sensationally saving a Vlahovic half-volley 10 minutes before the break. Koopmeiners, meanwhile, had another effort chalked off in the 42nd minute.
Juventus upped the pressure in the second half, with Chevalier also upping things and pulling off two impressive saves in quick succession.
But ultimately, the Lille resistance was broken by a Vlahovic penalty on the hour after Francisco Conceicao had been fouled by Benjamin Andre.
The result leaves Juventus 10th and Lille 12th in the Champions League table.
Data debrief: Lille looking good for qualification
After drawing 1-1, Lille are unbeaten in nine matches in all competitions and three matches in the Champions League.
The French side had beaten Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid in back-to-back European games.
They now have a seven-point buffer between themselves and the bottom eight in the league table.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
