Arsene Wenger believes that Real Madrid has been harsh on winger Gareth Bale, insisting that the Welsh star has all the qualities to make the difference in Sunday’s El Clasico clash with Barcelona.

Wenger, who will be in the beIN SPORTS studio covering El Clasico admitted that he was unsure if Bale will leave Los Blancos in the summer.

“I don’t know if he will stay or not. It doesn’t matter to me (if he stays or not) as long as you are somewhere you give your best.”

Much of the controversy with Bale has been his readiness to commit to the Welsh national side, whilst not giving his all for Real Madrid. That came to a head in November when Bale was pictured posing with a Wales, Golf, Madrid after his country sealed their place at Euro 2020. A move which drew plenty of ire from the Spanish media and Real Madrid fans. Despite this, Wenger believes that the club has been harsh on Bale adding that he has cropped up with a number of important goals for the side. 

“I must say people at the Bernabeu have been very harsh with Gareth Bale since he has been with Real Madrid I’ve seen him in many big games being decisive, and scoring important goals for Real Madrid.”

“I don’t know what happened there, but there seems to be unrest in his head.”

Looking forward to the clash on Sunday evening, Wenger believes that Bale is an ideal candidate to replace Eden Hazard who has been ruled out with a fractured ankle. For the former Arsenal boss, Bale offers plenty in terms of his overall play. 

“He (Bale) has the qualities that Real Madrid needs, he is the one that can expose people on the counter-attack. He has pace, and has quality runs off the ball and is quite a good finisher and in the air, he is good as well.”

Arsene Wenger had plenty to say on the upcoming El Clasico between Real Madrid and Barcelona, including the form of Antione Grizmann and how Quique Setien has started at the Camp Nou. 

Watch more from Arsene Wenger in the video above.