Bale exhausts his final life at Real Madrid LaLiga Santander Club hoped he would become their star

The end of February is approaching and in the first season after the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo, Gareth Bale has been unable to make the step up at Real Madrid that many inside the club hoped he would.

In fact, the Welshman is finding it difficult to even get in the starting line-up as Santiago Solari prefers Vinicius Junior, an 18-year-old who had never played in Europe prior to this season, and Bale's cameo appearances are doing little to help his cause.

Since returning from injury on 27 January, he has started just twice, against Alaves and Ajax, while his display after coming on as a substitute at home to Girona last weekend was not the sort of performance expected from a player who was tipped to succeed Ronaldo upon his arrival from Tottenham in 2013.

There have been many discussions at Madrid about whether to move on from the 29-year-old, but the aspiration was that he would take his game to another level after Ronaldo's exit for Juventus and would become the team's leader on the pitch, especially after his brace against Liverpool in the Champions League final last season.

Bale had actually considered leaving after that final, but the departure of Ronaldo changed everything; he finally had his chance to become the main man and in his sixth season in Madrid, the opportunity was there.

Both Julen Lopetegui and Solari have given him plenty of chances to prove what he is capable of, so often seen in glimpses during his time with Los Blancos, yet their public compliments have not been rewarded by Bale on the pitch. Instead, it is Karim Benzema who has taken the mantle that was left when Ronaldo joined Juventus.

Not only is Vinicius in the team ahead of the Welshman now, but also Lucas Vazquez, Madrid's tireless worker on the right wing. Zinedine Zidane would often prefer playing Vazquez, or Isco in a four-man midfield, rather than opt for Bale, and Solari has continued that by regularly favouring Vazquez over Bale. His 12 goals in 30 games are insufficient for what was expected of him before the season started.

As they have done in recent summers, the departure of Bale is being considered, but this time it feels like it could be definitive. The resurgence of Benzema post-Ronaldo, coupled with the emergence of Vinicius, means that the former Tottenham star is expendable and Madrid could look to use the funds from his sale to strengthen the squad.

Bale has a contract with the club until 2022 and will be 30 in the summer, yet despite his underwhelming performances in the Spanish capital, his market value has remained high in England as Chelsea and Manchester United have both pondered moves for him, and a return to Tottenham should not be ruled out either.

For Madrid, Chelsea and Tottenham stand out in particular as they both have players that they are interested in: Eden Hazard and Christian Eriksen. As such, Bale could be used as a bargaining chip in either deal.

There is still an appreciation for Bale by those inside the club at Madrid as he has been decisive in finals, but his regular injury problems, his failure to acclimatise to life in Spain, such as speaking the language, and his inability to put the team on his back outweigh the benefits of having him in the squad, rather than the likes of Hazard or Eriksen.

Nevertheless, the player wants to remain at Madrid and see out his contract, and the only way that he would leave is if Florentino Perez told him that the club no longer counted on him and would welcome offers.

Perhaps Bale could heed Marcelo's advice: "If they do not want me, they can pay me and I'll go."

This situation will likely find a resolution towards the end of the season as there is still plenty of time for the Welsh international to change people's minds. There is no doubt, though, that Bale has not been the player that Madrid hoped he would be, both with and without Ronaldo.