Gareth Bale has been backed to turn his form around at Tottenham - by his pal from North London rivals Arsenal.
Bale has struggled since returning to Spurs on loan, with the Real Madrid winger having started just once in the Premier League.
He has played more often in the Europa League, and could get a chance to impress Jose Mourinho in Monday's FA Cup clash against Wycombe Wanderers.
But his struggle for form has led to speculation that Spurs could look to end his loan spell early and send him back to the Bernabeu in the January transfer window.
However, Bale has found an unlikely ally among Tottenham's fierce rivals, after Dani Ceballos jumped to the Wales star's defence.
Arsenal midfielder Ceballos, who is also on loan from Madrid, reckons the Premier League is even more physical now than it was when Bale left for Los Blancos in 2013.
And he says the 31-year-old just needs more time to adapt.
“It’s not easy,” Ceballos told EFE, cited by Hola News .
“Gareth’s return has been good for both of us, but when he was here seven years ago, the league was completely different.
“I could give you the case of Thomas (Partey) and that of Fabinho, when he arrived at Liverpool.
“They are players who arrive and they know that it is a very physical league, but when you start playing they realize that it is twice as physical.
“It is very difficult to adapt quickly and I think that could be happening to Gareth.”
It was reported this week that Mourinho was running out of patience with Bale, after the manager was seen complaining about the winger on recent video footage broadcast by Tottenham.
In the video shared by the club's official channel SpursTV, Mourinho complains: "You want to stay here? Or go to Real Madrid and play no football?"
According to The Sun , Mourinho was talking about Bale to his assistant Joao Sacramento and other members of his backroom team.
Bale has made 12 appearances in all competitions for Spurs this season, scoring three goals.
