Tottenham interim head coach Ryan Mason reiterated any talks between the club and loanee Gareth Bale will not take place before the end of the season following his hat-trick performance.
Bale – on loan from LaLiga giants Real Madrid – improved his scoring run to eight goals in eight Premier League games with a treble in Sunday's 4-0 rout of relegated Sheffield United.
The Wales star forward has had an indifferent campaign, having been largely under-utilised when fit by former boss Jose Mourinho, who was sacked last month.
Bale has previously indicated he will return to Madrid next season where he is contracted until mid-2022 but performances like Sunday may sway Spurs to push harder to retain him.
"I think that is a conversation at the end of the season between Gareth, the club and his parent club, our main focus and priority should be the next game," Mason said.
"It sounds a cliche but it is true. I am glad he is happy, he should be because he has another match ball to add to the collection. It was an excellent performance as well.
"I think the decision at the moment and the priority is Gareth is ready to train and he is happy in training.
"We have got another big week of training because we have got a massive game next weekend and hopefully we can have a happy Gareth next weekend."
Bale scored the seventh hat-trick of his club career, three of which have come at Tottenham (four for Madrid). The Welshman's other trebles for Spurs came against Aston Villa in December 2012 in the Premier League, and in October 2010 against Inter in the Champions League.
He became the sixth Welshman to score 50 Premier League goals, and the first since Craig Bellamy reached this total back in December 2006.
All nine of Bale's Premier League goals this season have come at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium – the most goals by a player with 100 per cent of them coming at a single venue in the competition in 2020-21.
Mason, who is unlikely to have any say in the final decision, added he felt Bale was "outstanding" and "world class" against the Blades.
Nashville SC v San Jose Earthquakes: ‘A win would change everything’ - Godoy
Anibal Godoy insists that Nashville are already looking at their game against San Jose Earthquakes on Saturday as a must-win.
Nashville have won just once in the MLS this season and sit in 14th place in the Eastern Conference after a run of four without a win.
The Earthquakes, meanwhile, are bottom of the Western Conference having lost eight of their matches and recording just one win.
Godoy is aware of how their poor start to the season could affect their playoff hopes later down the line but is confident that Nashville can turn things around.
He said: “For us, it's an important week. It's a day we have to win, or we'll start to feel the pressure from other teams as they start to separate in the table.
“This league is long but if we want to get to the playoff you have to win games early on, especially at home.”
Liverpool agree compensation deal for Slot
Liverpool and Feyenoord have reached an agreement in principle over a compensation deal for Arne Slot to become the Reds’ manager next season, according to widespread Dutch media reports.
The Dutchman is reportedly poised to take over from Jurgen Klopp, who announced in January that he would be leaving the club at the end of the campaign.
Slot led Feyenoord to their second Eredivisie title last season after taking over the club in 2021.
It is believed that he topped the list of Liverpool’s favoured candidates due to his attacking playing style and ability to develop players.
Former Liverpool midfielder, Xabi Alonso, who led Bayer Leverkusen to their first Bundesliga title, and Sporting CP’s Ruben Amorim were also reported contenders to take over from Klopp.
Slot had already confirmed his interest in managing in the Premier League, both earlier this week and previously when he was linked to Tottenham in 2023.
QPR 4-0 Leeds United: Shock loss for Farke's men seals Leicester's promotion
QPR thrashed Leeds United 4-0 in the Championship on Friday, ensuring Leicester City booked their promotion straight back to the Premier League.
Ilias Chair was the star for the Hoops as he scored the opener and assisted two more goals to ensure QPR will stay in the Championship for another season.
Lucas Andersen, Lyndon Dykes and Sam Field also got their names on the scoresheet in an emphatic win for Marti Cifuentes' side.
Leeds' heaviest defeat of the season was a huge blow in the race for an automatic promotion spot, with Ipswich Town just one point behind them in third place with two games in hand going into their away clash against Hull City on Saturday.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
