The LAFC puts the golf game on hold – How Gareth Bale has returned to match fitness

When LAFC signed Gareth Bale on June 27, they weren’t under any illusion that he would arrive 90-minutes fit.

They couldn’t have done it! The Wales international was on the outside watching during his last year with Real Madrid. He only played when Carlo Ancelotti was facing a selection crisis. His contract expiring, the increased minutes of younger players and an injury that he had to endure kept him from having a significant impact on the Spanish giant’s win of La Liga and the Champions League. 

LAFC couldn’t throw caution to the wind to get as many minutes as possible from their new star. LAFC director Gavin Benjafield was able to work with the coaches to help Bale get back to optimal fitness. Benjafield, who has spent the past nine years with Watford or Ajax in the United States, is now in the fifth season of LAFC. 

Whether the new signing is a five-time Champions League winner or a third-round SuperDraft selection, determining a player’s “load management” (a phrase Popularized in the NBAIt is also where stars are given rest days to avoid injuries.

“As soon as it becomes clear that we’re in the process of signing a player, I dive into a couple of my favorite websites which will give me a good overview of what their last season looked like,” Benjafield told The Athletic. “How many match minutes did they play? How many 90-minute matches did they play when they began? From a distance, I’m already creating a mental picture.”

Benjafield added that it’s a very collaborative process, as the staff needs to assess a player’s mentality to know what they can handle. 

“One player will come here as hungry as anything and want to get there,” he said. “If you put the brakes on him, then you’re just going to be in a tug of war with him from day one. That’s not what you want.” 

In one of the summer window’s most surprising moves, Bale was one of four players who joined LAFC from a club in Europe’s five biggest leagues. While Denis Bouanga came from Ligue 1’s Saint-Étienne and Cristian Tello arrived by way of La Liga’s Real Betis, it was the arrival of Giorgio Chiellini from Juventus that is most often cited alongside Bale’s capture in the headlines. 

Bale is five years older than the Italian defender but it was Chiellini that arrived at the club closer towards 90 minutes of fitness. 

“Giorgio came in with a pretty decent previous season in terms of how many match minutes he played, both internationally as well as with Juventus,” Benjafield said. “Contrasting, Gareth did not come with very many minutes. That’s the first thing I do, just looking at where he is coming from. I’ll then look at the previous seasons, because obviously it’s not just about one season. I do look at injury history, anything which has him missing for a period of time.”

Since the beginning of the year, Bale has only played 648 minutes in competitive soccer. From those, 342 minutes came in his first two months in MLS. This was spread across 11 appearances. He’s made just two starts to date, spaced a few weeks apart with neither appearance lasting into even the 65th minute. 

In a vacuum, having Bale unable to come off the bench against MLS expansion side Charlotte FC isn’t a worrying thing (unless, of course, you’re from Wales). Priority is to get Bale in top form for the MLS postseason, which begins on October 20, ahead of the World Cup. However, the club hasn’t been able to get Bale in condition to make it through a full match just yet.

“The more red flags there are, the more we’re going to be a little bit more cautious in terms of how we integrate that player into training, as well as how we integrate them into the game,” Benjafield said. “When Gareth arrived, I really thought we needed a decent preseason for this guy. He’s had good national team exposure, but he’s been lacking training exposure in a team environment. Together with the coaching staff you develop a plan that will help him stay up for a period of time. 

Bale admitted Wednesday that it was important to make a gradual transition into LAFC participation. The following is the update for Nations League matches against Belgium, Poland and Slovenia. Welsh media reassured by wingerThat he would be available to play a leading part in Qatar.

​​“We have a plan in LA with what we’re doing,” Bale said. “We’re not doing too much straight away. Every footballer wants to play as much as they can, but we’re being clever and building myself up for the last important part of the season. I’m hoping that this will put me in good shape for the World Cup. I think I’ll be a lot fitter.”

The Athletic’s conversation with Benjafield took place on Friday, before Bale reported to Wales camp. Bale, who started on Tuesday and had only logged 27 minutes, was removed from the bench on the weekend. He created three chances and placed a shot on target.

Benjafield said that both Benjafield and the club had planned for him more often to feature in the lineup by the end of the season.

“I’d probably say we’re a little bit behind schedule,” he added. “I would probably say that we would have liked to have gone a little harder. There were two games that he missed out with a previously existing issue (his back) that sporadically pops its head up, and it kept him out for those two games.” 

The Timms Family traveled from Porthcawl (Wales) to watch @GarethBale11 play at the Banc… instead, they got the next best thing. 😉 pic.twitter.com/cfpzM7Etyz

— LAFC (@LAFC) August 24, 2022

Benjafield contrasts the building of Bale’s match fitness to that of Chiellini, as the two arrived around the same time in the summer. The Italian has started in eight of his 10 appearances, logging 625 minutes while rotating thanks to LAFC’s deep stable of center backs. Bale did not take as long to integrate because of the work he had done with Juventus in Italy and Italy in months prior to his Stateside move. 

“(Chiellini) started with us on July 1, so he only had a one-month break from that kind of football exposure,” Benjafield said. “It was almost like a pretty short offseason for him. He keeps himself in really good shape; we’re conscious of his age, 38, but he came with a good training base and a good approach. We were happy to push him along nicely and I think he’s in a good space now. He’s able to give a lot to the team and a lot of intensity in training, as well as games.”

Of course, Benjafield and his colleagues aren’t the only ones digging deep into a player’s fitness. He hears from national team analysts and physical therapists one month before international windows. 

“Some federations are already sending an email four weeks ahead of the camp,” he said. “‘Hey guys, how’s it going?’ We know what’s coming for the player.”

While LAFC has players in contention to feature for other World Cup sides — including Kellyn Acosta is a U.S. midfielder, Canadian duo Doneil Henry and Maxime Crépeau, and Ecuadorian pair José Cifuentes and Diego Palacios — few nations are as eager to see progress from a player as Wales with Bale. The team’s all-time leading goalscorer helped the side back to the World Cup for the first time since 1958, and will undoubtedly be expected to lead the attack as he has since his senior debut in 2006. While some wondered if moving to a “Band four” league like MLS would represent too far of a step down in quality , Benjafield cited some peculiarities which make dosing any player’s minutes more of a headache than he experienced when he was working in the Premier League or Eredivisie. 

Or, to put it another way, there are fewer games in The. Extreme parity of MLSWhere full squad rotation may be advisable.

“The only problem here is in the MLS, it’s quite interesting that whether you’re playing San Jose at the bottom (of the table) or if you’re playing Austin up at the top, it’s not a guarantee,” Benjafield said. “We’ve rotated a few times this season and it’s not worked in our favor. You’ve rested a few guys, but you’re still looking to get results. It’s important to realize that the schedule is demanding. I mean, we’ve played five games in 15 days — that’s ridiculous. That’s EPL over December. It’s not good for players’ health and safety, and it’s not good for the product on the field. There’s been multiple matches in the heat and altitude, and we’re traveling over time zones, as well. Take all those factors, and it’s not quite like Man City getting on a bus to play Liverpool.”

While it may not have been at the desired pace, LAFC feels that they’ll be able to get more out of Bale as the regular season winds to an end. He is with Wales for the current international window, and it’s certain that the club will track his minutes against Belgium and Poland. 

LAFC has already secured the top spot in the Western Conference with two games remaining, meaning they’ll get a first-round bye and enter the MLS Cup playoffs in the second round. They’ll have more time to train with Bale and take him off international duty. — which is a priority for the player, as Bale himself stated on Wednesday. 

“I haven’t played 90 minutes yet, which is what I’m building up to,” Bale said. “We’re on a good path to where I want to be. Of course, I want to play 90 minutes as much as I can, but I understand I need to build up to that because I haven’t done it an awful lot in the last few years. It is important for me to enjoy each week. Hopefully that will be good enough for me to help LAFC and, ultimately, be ready for the World Cup.”

As for Bale’s Other sporting past-timeBenjafield feels that the links have been neglected in his day job.

“Yeah, I’ve been having good banter with the player under question,” Benjafield said after a laugh when asked if Bale has been playing much golf since arriving in LA. “He says it’s still a target that he wants to be starting games and almost playing 90s before he’s gonna unleash himself onto the golf course. Look, I think any activity that keeps you active and gets your mind off the game, gets you off your telephone … I love the idea of getting out on the golf course, going and smashing a ball around and having a good time. Smart players are essential. I mean, if you are struggling with something, particularly if you’re struggling with your back, then you need to be smart about it and maybe not playing a full 18 holes, maybe stick to a nine-hole round. There’s nothing wrong with good activity on your off days to recess, have some good time with hopefully some friends, and then come back and train.

“I would not say that it’s a bad activity. I wish that I had more off days so I could go and do the same.”

(Photo by Gary A. Vasquez – USA TODAY Sports