Gareth Bale would be assured legendary status if he played anywhere else. For his first season alone, he should be guaranteed a lifetime of goodwill.

He has found in the last 12 months, though, that life with Real Madrid isn’t like anywhere else at all. A defining goal in the Champions League final? A stunning effort to beat Barcelona in the Copa del Rey final? It stands for nothing if the locals - who love to find a scapegoat - turn on you.

And that is what has happened to Bale. Watching from the sidelines on Wednesday night, as Juventus destroyed Real’s hopes of retaining the Champions League, I saw a player who was timid and lacking confidence. The spark that made him so scintillating to watch had gone.

To get it back, he should return to the Barclays Premier League this summer. Never mind what some people are saying about sticking it out in Spain for the sake of British football - this is about a young lad’s career. He would not be taking the easy way out. Who benefits from him being unhappy?

A move home would make sense on a number of levels, not least as while Cristiano Ronaldo is there, scoring a goal per game and dominating the agenda, Bale - no matter what he does, not even after a debut campaign that included 22 goals and 17 assists - is in a fight he will struggle to win.

Ronaldo does not want to be upstaged and will always be Real’s main man. I don’t know him but I don’t get the sense he is putting an arm around Bale’s shoulder or looking after him in the dressing room. Why? Look at how he sulked when Bale took a goal off him against Levante in March.

Does Bale have to put up with that? The more Ronaldo sulks when Bale does something he doesn’t like, the more the Bernabeu crowd will react with fury. That was evident when he missed a glorious headed chance against Juventus with the score at 1-1.

Being an £86million player in Madrid means you are gauged differently. Whether he likes it or not, Bale will always be measured against Ronaldo, Zinedine Zidane and Luis Figo, other world-record signings who produced magic just when it was needed.

These past two years will have been a culture shock for Bale, who is clearly down to earth and quite shy. Life at Tottenham couldn’t have prepared him at all for what has hit him in Madrid, where the expectation is to win the Champions League or La Liga - or both - every year.

Had he moved from Manchester United, Liverpool or Chelsea, it would still have been a massive step but on Wednesday I saw how the pressure was having an impact. He was passive and, though he looked more likely to score than Ronaldo, he couldn’t stamp any authority on the contest.

The Bale I played against demanded the ball and made things happen with his explosive pace, strength and aggression. He had football arrogance but not once did I see him demanding his team-mates give him the ball against Juventus. His personality should have come to the fore.

Perhaps life is just too different for him. He understands Spanish but has not yet given an interview to the Spanish press in their language and, given how long he’s been there, you have to wonder whether that would change next year. But it would be good to see him come home.

First, we have lost too many top players - Ronaldo, Luis Suarez and Xabi Alonso to name three - to La Liga in recent years and getting Bale back would reclaim some balance. We want box-office players and he would immediately become the Premier League’s No 1 performer again.

His influence in La Liga might have dipped but in 30 games, he has 13 goals and nine assists - compare that to Eden Hazard, our double Player of the Year, who in 36 games has scored 14 goals and provided eight assists. The difference is minimal.

Second, he would automatically improve whichever team he went to. If Chelsea decided to show interest and he went to Stamford Bridge, nobody would catch them in the race for the title next season. Equally, if the Manchester clubs signed him, they would be right back in the hunt.

Nobody could suggest, either, that he has failed. Bale has won four medals for Madrid.

Of the players who have left the Premier League to join them, such as David Beckham and Michael Owen, only Steve McManaman has enjoyed anywhere near the impact of the Wales international.

Playing for Madrid, it must also be said, does not suit everyone. Do we regard Kaka, Arjen Robben or Wesley Sneijder as being poor players after a bad time in Madrid? No chance. Robben and Sneijder, remember, won the Champions League after they moved on.

Still Real say Bale isn’t for sale and their all-powerful chairman, Florentino Perez, likes him. Meanwhile, Jonathan Barnett, his agent, also maintains Bale will not leave but that will not stop speculation raging about what happens next.

Should he get the chance to come back to the Premier League, he must grab it with both hands. His achievements with Real are there for all to see. Now it would be good to see him playing with happiness again.