Bale will be under pressure to justify price tag

Questions are being asked on the price tag of Gareth Bale following his world-record £85m (about $150m) transfer to the Real Madrid from Tottenham Hotspurs, which makes his move the most expensive in world football.Is a player, who, in all honesty, is not at the same level as Lionel Messi and or even Cristiano Ronaldo, really worth that much?I don’t think many players are worth what clubs pay for them, little or much, in the transfer market but they do, and will continue to pay ridiculous amounts - it’s called market forces.It becomes more outrageous when Real Madrid are involved—these days we also have the likes of Chelsea, Manchester City and Paris Saint Germain.Regardless of whether the club pays little or much for a player they so wish to sign, but $150m is a bit much for any player.Other than last season when he swept all individual accolades in the Premier League, Bale, good as he is, has no piece of silverware and is coming from an above average team in an overhyped league.No doubt, the Welshman will flourish in La Liga because it fits well his style of play far more than the rough Premier League, and there he will be measuring against the crème de la crème of the game.You definitely can’t compare him, at least yet with Messi or Ronaldo, because they’re in a classy of their own – maybe Neymar, who has the talent, skill and potential to be the best in the world.For any professional player worth his name, the opportunity to play for Real Madrid is one not to miss –how much they pay for him becomes another story for the media and fans to waste time debating about.Only Real Madrid can go for any player from any club and they will get him no matter what—in their long illustrious history, they don’t fear paying over the odds for the best talent.The chance to put on the white shirt of Real Madrid might only come around once in a player’s lifetime - and it is understandable that Gareth is the latest player among the many greats before him, who didn’t want to miss out on it.Last season the Welsh international was at his best for Spurs and was, in terms of contribution and changing games with moments of brilliance, almost at the same level as Messi and Ronaldo.In football, the best players can have not so many great games all the time, but they change a game with a moment of brilliance, and Bale did just that for Spurs. But now, he faces the biggest challenge of his career at the Bernabeu.The 24-year old is already one of the finest players in Europe and he has everything needed to become the best player in the world but he will have to fit into the Real system that revolves around making Ronaldo the best.Carlo Ancelloti will have to find a way of not only accommodating the world’s most and second most expensive players, get the very best of them but also keep both happy.It is a bit of a cliche - but it is true players and get better playing with better players, and Bale has the opportunity to prove to the world that last season was not a one-off and that his is actually good value for the $150m record fee that Real forked out for his transfer.