Jose Mourinho appeared to take a swipe at Gareth Bale when he revealed the star signing didn’t want to play at Everton in the FA Cup.
Bale was left out of the Spurs squad for the visit to Goodison, with the player complaining of “feeling uncomfortable”, and then asking for a scan after the weekend game at West Brom.
Following the thrilling Cup tie, where Tottenham lost a nine-goal stunner, Mourinho admitted he was surprised that the Wales star wanted a scan… when he hadn’t featured in the game at West Brom.
“I think it is better for me to say: we played against West Brom on the Sunday and he didn't play, he was on the bench, and Monday I was a bit surprised by him wanting to have a scan because he was not feeling comfortable,” Mourinho said.
“He didn't train on Monday, then on the Tuesday he trained with the team.
"But I was informed his desire would be to work with the sports science for a couple of days to strengthen that area where he was not feeling comfortable. That is the reason why he is not here.
“I don't think it is an obvious injury, I would say he feels uncomfortable and because of that training session he couldn't be 100 per cent.”
When asked if that was Mourinho’s message to Bale that the player himself should show more desire and resilience, he replied: “Gareth was not here and the only thing I can say is the question I was asked, and I wanted to make it very clear the situation, which I am being completely open and honest about.”
