Ian Rush makes audacious Cardiff City prediction involving Gareth Bale

Wales footballing icon Ian Rush believes that Cardiff City are a realistic landing spot for Gareth Bale when his Real Madrid contract expires – and has predicted that the 32-year-old may very well end up at Steve Morison’s side next season.

Bale reminded what the footballing world what he was all about on Thursday night by scoring twice for his country against Austria to secure their place in a play-off against either Scotland or Ukraine for the chance to play at the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

It has been a season of struggle for Bale, who has featured just four times for Real Madrid in La Liga this season and has suffered from injury issues, whilst also receiving stinging criticism from the Spanish media.

And with his contract in Spain’s capital set to expire this summer, discussion on the winger’s future will no doubt accelerate in the coming months.

Bale will need to keep match-fit somewhere if he will be playing at the World Cup with his country, and with money seemingly no object considering he is reportedly on £600,000 per week at the Santiago Bernabeu, Rush thinks that Bale really could end up back at his hometown club for perhaps his final season in football.

“He’ll keep his options open and one of those offers might be Cardiff,” Rush told Gambling.com.

“It would not surprise me if he went there. He’s a Cardiff boy and even though they’re in the Championship I don’t think that’ll bother him.

“He certainly wouldn’t be going there for the money but it ticks a lot of other boxes.

“He’d be doing Wales proud because it’s his hometown team and it would allow him to prolong his international career if he’s playing at a less demanding level in his club career.”

The Verdict

It would be one of the most iconic homecomings