Oliver Burke has admitted that the comparisons to Gareth Bale that were thrust upon him as an emerging talent were unrealistic, after joining the Welsh Galactico in La Liga.
The former Celtic forward, who has already broken the transfer record for a Scottish player twice at just 22, moved on loan to Alaves during the summer after struggling to break into the West Brom side.
The 22-year-old was originally compared to Real Madrid and Wales superstar Bale when he first burst on to the scene at Nottingham Forest, before his record-smashing move to RB Leipzig.
But he's determined to finally make a name for himself in his own right as he prepares to be the first Scot to play in the Spanish top flight since Alan Hutton had a loan spell with Real Mallorca six years ago.
Burke said: "The comparison with Gareth Bale was something they used to say about me when I was a kid. But he's always been on another level to me.
"What I need to do is establish myself as Oliver Burke and not as the new Gareth Bale. To do that I need to work hard in La Liga.
"Everything that has happened to me in my career has happened very fast. I've played in England, Scotland and Germany.
"I am focused on what I need to do now. I feel more mature as a player and I have the opportunity to show why they were all talking about me a potentially good player a few years ago.
"I've been given an opportunity to play in what is arguably the best league in the world against big, big clubs.
"They've told me the fans here are wonderful and I like the stadium. I can't wait to go out there and play. My preference would be to play as a right winger, but I can also play as a striker."
