Jose Mourinho is not the right manager for Gareth Bale: Former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Jamie O'Hara
Gareth Bale made a rare start in the Premier League in Tottenham Hotspur's 1-0 loss away at Brighton on Sunday. He was later slaughtered in the media for his poor showing, alongside the entire Spurs team.
The Welsh player, who returned to the club in a high-profile loan move from Real Madrid last summer, has found life difficult in London this season.
His performance against Brighton, in particular, drew heat from his former Spurs teammate Jamie O'Hara, who tweeted his frustration after the game.
The Englishman later appeared on a talk show in the United Kingdom (UK) to discuss what has gone wrong with his former teammate's second spell at Tottenham Hotspur. He said:
"I don't think Jose Mourinho is the right manager for Gareth Bale. His standard of what he expects or how he wants him to play means you're just seeing the absolute worst of him."
Gareth Bale is almost embarrassing himself when he plays for Tottenham Hotspur: Jamie O'Hara
Jamie O'Hara also pointed out that the confidence and arrogance that Gareth Bale had during his first spell at Tottenham Hotspur have disappeared.
"I feel for him (Gareth Bale) a little bit. But I also look at him and think 'Come on Gareth!' He's always had this inner belief in himself and had this arrogance about him - as I think the best players should. I watch him now and he looks a complete shadow of himself."
O'Hara went one step further and claimed that Bale's apparent fear of getting injured has led him to embarrass himself while playing for Tottenham Hotspur.
"He's so in his own head because he's scared of getting injured, that he's almost embarrassing himself when he plays."
Jose Mourinho, on the other hand, chose not to target Bale's performance following the defeat at the Amex Stadium. He said:
"I am not going to individualise the performance. We tried in the first half to give the team similar dynamic as we have when Harry is playing. We felt to connect with Son, the way we work all the time in the sense of Harry, we tried to do that with Gareth coming in side with his left foot vision."
Tottenham Hotspur will now look to bounce back from their loss in a home fixture against Chelsea on Thursday.