Spurs boss Jose Mourinho has indicated that Gareth Bale is still suffering from the after-effects of enduring so many injuries during his time at Real Madrid, which is holding back his first-team opportunities in north London.
The Welshman rejoined Tottenham on loan this season after leaving for Real Madrid in 2013 and has appeared to have recaptured his mojo after a strange period in the Spanish capital where he won plenty of trophies but failed to endear himself to the fanbase.
That was partly down to the frequency of injuries he sustained with a remarkable 23 different issues, according to Transfermarkt, including calf, knee and hamstring complaints.
Those absences and the mental fatigue of never being quite 100% fit appear to have had a lasting impact.
Although Bale has spoken of his delight at returning to his old club, he has been short on game time so far, as while he's made four starts in the Europa League has been used sparingly in the Premier League.
Bale's started just once, made a further two appearances as a substitute, and didn't get on the pitch against Chelsea in the goalless draw at the weekend.
"The only problem with Gareth is to get into the dynamic and the confidence of playing consecutive matches without any bad feeling or negative feeling, without any remembrance of the recent past when the condition was not the best and the fears were there," Mourinho said.
"I think it's more about that but he's playing regularly and he has a chance of a physical evolution.
"He doesn't need a tactical or technical one. He just needs to get his confidence back of playing three matches in a week. It's more about that."
Bale may be in contention to play for Spurs against LASK in the Europa League on Thursday night. A draw for Spurs will see them advance to the last 32 of the competition.
However, a defeat will mean progression to the knockout stage could be out of their hands as the Austrian side will draw level with them with a victory.
"The priority is always to try to win the next match," added the Spurs boss. "The next match is a Europa League match.
"If at the end of the match we have a draw then yes that's fine and we've qualified before the last match but we're not going to play for that. We play to win."
He added: "The game tomorrow is a very difficult match for us. LASK is fighting for a chance to be qualified.
"We beat them at home but, because I know them, that game does not reflect them."
For more updates on today's press conference, click here.
