Bale: Real Madrid blocked my departure last year

Gareth Bale accused Real Madrid of making life "very difficult" for him, saying on Wednesday he's tried - and failed - to negotiate an exit several times.

Bale was close to joining Chinese side Jiangsu Suning last summer on a three-year deal reportedly worth £1 million per week. Madrid were prepared to allow the Welshman to leave on a free transfer, but the club ultimately called off the move.

"They blocked everything at the last second," Bale told Sky Sports. "So it was a project I was excited for last year, but it didn't materialize. There's been other instances where we've tried to go but the club won't allow it or they've done something."

Bale started in seven of Madrid's first 10 matches of the 2019-20 season, raising the prospect of a reconciliation. But he fell to the wayside as the campaign progressed.

He was an unused substitute toward the end of Madrid's title-winning run and was left out of Zinedine Zidane's squad for the Champions League clash against Manchester City. Zidane said at the time that Bale "preferred not to play."

Bale contradicted that account Wednesday, indicating Madrid have the final say on his present and future.

"I want to play football. I'm still motivated to play football. So I guess it's on the club," he said. "I can't really do much. They're in control of everything. I have a contract. All I can do is carry on what I'm doing, and hopefully, something comes up."

"I'm only 31 but I feel I'm in great shape," he added. "I feel like I have a lot to give. But as I said, it's in the club's hands. They make things very difficult, to be honest."

A return to the Premier League remains an "option," according to Bale, who still has two years remaining on his contract with Los Blancos. He joined Madrid from Tottenham Hotspur in 2013 for a then-world-record £85-million fee.