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Martin Keown has claimed that Gareth Bale failed to do enough in midweek to earn him a spot in Tottenham’s starting XI this weekend in the North London derby.

Spurs host bitter rivals Arsenal on Sunday in the Premier League, with both teams having contrasting seasons so far.

Jose Mourinho’s side sit top of the table after the opening 10 league games and are now being mentioned as title contenders, while Arsenal are sat down in 14th struggling for any kind of consistency.

Keown doesn’t believe Bale will be included in this weekend’s starting line-up for Spurs, stating that teammate Steven Bergwijn will play ahead of him.

Bale scored on Thursday night from the penalty spot during his side’s 3-3 draw away to LASK in the Europa League, which was enough to seal qualification to the knockout rounds of the tournament.

But the 31-year-old attacker still doesn’t look at his very sharpest and has been an unused substitute in the last two consecutive Premier League fixtures.

“Their first XI is becoming much clearer and Mourinho doesn’t mind making big calls. Gareth Bale is not in the XI yet and didn’t do enough in the Europa League to replace Steven Bergwijn — a player who Mourinho previously admitted was not his first-choice signing,” Keown told the Daily Mail.

TBR’s View:

It was always going to be a case of being patient with Bale following his return to Spurs on loan from Real Madrid, as he’s clearly struggled for match fitness and it’s a totally different challenge getting back into the grove of Premier League football.

The left-footed Welshman is viewed by many supporters as the man to take up the right-winger position in the best XI, teaming up with the already clinical forward line of Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son.

But Mourinho is deciding to be more cautious with the four-time Champions League winner and perhaps a cameo appearance from the bench is more likely in what is sure to be a fast-paced game against Arsenal tomorrow.