Gareth Bale discusses Real Madrid form ahead of El Clasico

Gareth Bale discusses Real Madrid form ahead of El Clasico

Real Madrid still have ‘gears to go up’ despite an excellent start to the 2015/16 campaign, according to Los Blancos’ Welsh forward Gareth Bale.

Bale’s admission came during a wide-ranging interview with bwin’s extra-time segment, in which he discussed the team’s form, his own fitness and the upcoming Clasico against Barcelona.

Los Blancos are 6/4 favourites for victory over their great rivals at Santiago Bernabeu, with the Catalan side 17/10 for the win and the draw priced at 13/5.

The 26-year-old’s suggestion that Real have yet to hit top gear is an ominous one for their opponents, after what has been a very positive start to the season.

Los Merengues have won ten of their 15 games so far, losing just once and keeping a rock-solid ten clean sheets that speak volumes for their defensive stringency under manager Rafa Benitez.

It’s 17/5 that Real can shut out the Blaugrana for the first time since the 2011 Copa del Rey final on Saturday and 17/4 they can do so as part of a win to nil.

Bale’s injury troubles have meant that he hasn’t played any part in eight of Real’s last 11 fixtures, but the world’s most expensive player tells bwin he is “ready for the battle” after returning to action in the 3-2 defeat to Sevilla earlier this month.

The Welshman famously scored the match winner against Barcelona in the 2014 Copa del Rey Final and revealed to bwin the goal was among the best he has ever scored.

Bale told bwin he is well aware that his pace and power scare defenders and there could have been no greater demonstration than that strike, which came after an incredibly defiant run from inside his own half.

He is 2/1 to score at any time against Barca, 19/4 to do so as part of a victory for his side and 8/1 to net the game’s final goal.

Man City maestro STILL most destructive Premier League opening day debutant

Man City maestro STILL most destructive Premier League opening day debutant

Yohan Cabaye, Rudy Gestede, Andre Ayew and Georginio Wijnaldum all enjoyed scoring debuts on the opening day of the Premier League season.

Yet, despite their net bulging exploits, not one was destructive enough to enter into the pantheon of the most destructive opening day inaugural outings in divisional history.

Those prestigious positions will remain on lockdown for another campaign after none of the aforementioned goal getters managed to net more than once.

Scoring at least twice was a pre-requisite for making our list of 12 luminaries, rated according to the goal-per-minute ratios of their opening day debuts.

That means that Manchester City ace Sergio Aguero remains top of the pops thanks to his first league outing for the Citizens in 2011/12.

Introduced for the last half an hour, the Argentine, 2/1 favourite to be the leading top-flight marksman this term, struck twice in an ominous foreshadowing of what was to come for the division’s defences.

Not all of those who join him on our rundown have gone on to enjoy such fruitful careers with the clubs they had just joined, but the brilliance of their debuts will remain undimmed.

Defour v N’Sakala: Anderlecht stars take the Turn, Volley, Score challenge

Defour v N’Sakala: Anderlecht stars take the Turn, Volley, Score challenge

The bwin gamesmasters recently set Belgian Pro League Champions RSC Anderlecht a variety of fiendish footballing tasks as part of their Insider Matchday with the club.

In this installment of their exploits Paars Wit stars Steven Defour and Fabrice N’Sakala were called upon for that peerless test of back-to-goal brilliance – the Turn, Volley, Score challenge.

Given their respective goalscoring exploits during the 2014/15 campaign, Defour had to rate a hefty favourite, netting six times to N’Sakala’s zero.

It seems no one told that to the young DR Congo international.

Having watched his teammate blaze his volley over the crossbar, the 24-year-old smashed his volley into the bottom right-hand corner with jubilant “Oui!” to claim the contest.

Mitrovic the moral victor in Anderlecht ‘Dizzy Kicks’ challenge

Mitrovic the moral victor in Anderlecht ‘Dizzy Kicks’ challenge

The bwin cameras recently caught up with Belgian Pro League Champions RSC Anderlecht for a light-hearted Insider Matchday.

Other videos from the day, available at the bwin YouTube channel, showcase the ball control and volleying technique of Besnik Hasi’s stars.

For laughs per minute neither match the exploits of Ibrahima Conte, Steven Defour, Fabrice N’Sakala and Aleksandar Mitrovic when the quartet took on the Dizzy Kicks challenge.

Attempting to the find the back of the net after a sense-scrambling spin or four round the spotted ball was never going to be easy, even for title-winning professional footballers, and so it proved.

Not one of the discombobulated foursome was able to bag, not even Mitrovic, scorer of seven goals in his last ten outings for the club.

However, the Serb has to be proclaimed the moral victor – he was the only one who managed to successfully connect with the ball.

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