For any footballer who plays for Real Madrid in the modern era, the prospect of leaving the club must feel like a step down no matter where they go – but it does not have to be like that. When it comes to Gareth Bale’s career, it looks like he is approaching a decision that will shape the rest of his life as a footballer.

I watched El Clasico on Sunday and it was clear Bale was having a hard time of it. The reaction to defeat to Barcelona and the stick he has received from the Spanish media and some fans will only make it more difficult. He had a great first season and I admire his determination to fight for his place in the most competitive squad in world football.

I get the impression that the only way Bale is going to leave Madrid is if the club tell him to go. As their record signing, he may yet believe that the time for that is a long way off but we have seen them do it with some big names in recent years, including Mesut Özil and Angel Di Maria.

My feeling is that he would be perfect for Manchester United. Of course, as a fan of my former club I would like to see him there but, looking at it objectively, I always felt that Bale was a natural fit for United as he developed at Tottenham from a left-back into one of the best attacking footballers in the country.

Gareth Bale (GETTY IMAGES)

He would be loved at Old Trafford. In return I believe he could turn Louis van Gaal’s team into serious title contenders next season. In my years at United I witnessed some signings who, over their careers, transformed the fortunes of the team. From Eric Cantona when I was an apprentice, to Dwight Yorke, Ruud van Nistelrooy and Wayne Rooney. These were great footballers who became great United players. Bale has the potential to make as much of an impact as any of them. All good players need to be appreciated. Bale would be coming to United in a time of change when the team is looking for leaders. Madrid will always be in a state of upheaval, with new presidents and a fresh intake of players each summer. At United there has also been great change in the past 22 months, but the club is trying to move towards stability in the post-Sir Alex Ferguson era.

Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Show all 24 1 /24 Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings BARCELONA: Claudio Bravo Pulled off a couple of fine saves to keep Barcelona level in the first half, and another from a deflected Benzema shot late on. Solid in general. 7/10 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Dani Alves Defended brilliantly against Ronaldo for the most part and provided Luis Suarez with a beautiful long pass for the second goal – he’ll be tough to replace if he leaves. 7 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Gerard Pique Produced an absolutely perfect tackle in the first-half to deny Bale and never looked under pressure or in any danger. 8 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Jeremy Mathieu Not many would have had the Frenchman down as the first goal scorer but he took his goal excellently. Defended stoutly and good in possession. 8 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Jordi Alba A Duracell bunny down the left hand side, he runs up and down the flank like a man possessed. Brilliant in defence and attack he has a claim to be the best left-back in the world. 8 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Javier Mascherano A very clever performance by a very clever player, the enforcer did exactly what was needed of him – foul Real Madrid players when they looked dangerous and give the ball to better players when in possession. 8 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Andres Iniesta When Real Madrid were on top Iniesta was bypassed by the men in white as Isco, Kroos and Modric exerted control. But as soon as Barcelona took over, he was at the fulcrum, never letting Los Blancos back in. 7 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Ivan Rakitic For large spells of the game Rakitic was outplayed by his opposite number Luka Modric, but he was always a willing worker. 6 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Luis Suarez Brilliant performance from a man in great form. Never gave Ramos and Pepe a second’s rest and took his goal expertly, with an expert first touch and serene finish. 8 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Neymar A complete mixed bag from the Brazilian who was excellent in every part of the game except his finishing. Should have had at least two goals but was wild when presented with some very good chances. 6 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Lionel Messi There were parts of the game where Messi appeared a passenger. But as soon as Barca took the lead he sensed blood and took control as creator-in-chief and but for some wayward finishing from team-mates would’ve had more than just one assist. 8 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings From the bench: Sergio Busquets Came on for Rakitic to give the home side an extra layer of protection – Real Madrid didn’t create a chance after he entered the game. 7 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings REAL MADRID: Iker Casillas Stories of his decline are overblown, he is still an excellent shot-stopper and denied both Alba and Messi in great fashion. Real’s best player in the second-half. 7 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Dani Carvajal Run ragged by Neymar, the Spanish defender has a long way to go to be considered among the elite. 5 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Sergio Ramos Defended poorly for the Mathieu goal (it was his man) and he and Pepe lost Suarez for the second goal. Considered a world class defender but while he looks smart on the ball and has the athletic tools he makes a lot of high profile errors. 5 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Pepe Couldn’t cope with Suarez before being taken off for Raphael Varane, even though he didn’t appear to be suffering an injury. 5 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Marcelo Like Alba on the opposite side he is a constant menace down the wing and was easily more of an attacking threat than Gareth Bale. A solid performance on the front and back foot. 7 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Luka Modric Controlled the game for a long period but lost control for good after Barcelona went in front. Ran out of legs in the final stages. 6 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Toni Kroos Largely the same story as with Modric, although not quite as influential given he has to sit a little bit deeper. Always good on the ball but couldn’t do enough after his team fell behind. 6 Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Isco When Real were on top he was arguably the best player on the pitch but was completely taken out of the game in the final half hour, barely getting on the ball. 6 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Cristiano Ronaldo Had a 20-minute spell either side of half-time when he was the dominant player on the pitch but struggled outside of that time frame. Took his goal well but should also have scored in the opening stages when he hit the bar with a volley. Couldn’t get in the game when his team needed him at the end. 5 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Gareth Bale Offered very little. At all. No wonder the Real fans aren’t happy with their world record signing. He seems scared to make a mistake (lest he incur the wrath of Ronaldo) so doesn’t attempt to take people on when he has a chance. He had one sight at goal and dragged it badly wide. Utterly anonymous in the final half an hour. 3 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings Karim Benzema The least heralded player of the BBC was easily the best of the three. Always the hardest working he set up Ronaldo well with a cross that he should have scored before providing a beautiful flicked assist for the goal. Also went close late on with a long-range effort. 7 Getty Images Barcelona 2 Real Madrid 1 player ratings From the bench: Raphael Varane A strange substitution that had little bearing on the result. Pepe must have been injured. 5 Andrew Surma/Demotix/Corbis

On Sunday I thought Madrid played extremely well in the first half. Luka Modric and Toni Kroos controlled the game in a way we’ve never seen from opposition teams at the Nou Camp in the past 10 years. They created chances too, but then, after conceding the second goal, they just seemed to run out of ideas.

Out in the wide position, Bale did not look like a happy bunny. I can understand why he would want to see out his time at Madrid but even if he was to leave after two years, no one could say that, having won a Champions League title, his time there has been a failure. He has never won anything in English football and he would be hungry for success in this country. He is a phenomenal footballer who comes ready-made for the Premier League.

Frustrated Gerrard should have started crucial game

Watching Steven Gerrard on Sunday, I suspect that his first thought while he was warming up during the first half was “How am I not playing in this game?” His second would have been that when he did get on, he was going to put a few tackles in and get the home crowd going.

He certainly managed the tackles, and in fact even his first challenge on Juan Mata was one of those that was only just timed OK. By the time he was into Ander Herrera his frustration had got the better of him.

Should he have started the game? Of course he should. There was only one person who can have thought that Gerrard was not right to start against Manchester United at Anfield in a must-win game for Liverpool, and that was Brendan Rodgers.

(Getty Images)

United were brilliant in the first half, but if they had been up against Gerrard then it might have been different. He had the frustration of not playing in the game, and then he had to watch a first half in which none of his team-mates even made a tackle. It is not nice to stand on the sideline and see your own team getting destroyed at home to a big rival.

I can see what he was trying to do when he came on: put a few tackles in and get the crowd going. But even when you can feel the emotions rising in you, the most important thing is control. I got sent off a few times in my life but I never lost my head. I mistimed tackles and I made mistakes.

Gerrard is getting closer to his final game at Anfield and his final game for Liverpool. Anfield will be a special place for him, just as Old Trafford was for me. The first time I retired, only Sir Alex Ferguson and I knew that the last league game of the 2010-11 season against Blackpool was to be my final game at Old Trafford. I was a little bit sad but I am not one for tears. The end of a career comes to us all and there is not a lot you can do about that.

I took a look around. My family were there in the private box that we rented during my time at United, and then that was it. We played the Champions League final six days later. Then in eight months’ time, I was back in the first-team squad! When I finally quit for the second time in the summer of 2013 I had accepted that this really was the end and, having got over that, the move into retirement was a lot easier.

It’s amazing Carrick has so few caps for England

I expect Michael Carrick to play for England against Lithuania tonight. He is back in favour for his club and it will probably follow that he plays for his country too. He should have played more for England than the 31 caps he has so far. It is incredible to think that he has one fewer than Danny Welbeck on 32.

As I have said before in this column, no one appreciated Michael more than the midfielders who played alongside him at United. He is not a flash footballer. He doesn’t hit Hollywood passes. He doesn’t score lots of goals. But I loved playing alongside him. He was always in the right place. He gave me licence to play.

At 33, Michael is still easily capable of doing that for the other players in this current England team. He gives any attacking midfielder alongside him lots of the ball and also the licence to go forward without worrying about leaving their defence exposed. He would have been the perfect England midfield partner for Frank Lampard or Steven Gerrard, but most of the time it was those two who played together.

Michael Carrick wants one last hurrah at a major tournament with England (Getty Images)

I don’t think he has ever been given a proper run in the England team. As soon as the team has had a bad result, it is Michael who has paid the price. He made his debut in 2001 but he has played just one tournament game, against Ecuador in the 2006 World Cup finals. He should have played more at international level, and had he been Spanish or German he probably would have done.

It is not for nothing that Michael has been the linchpin for United for so long. He has just never had the faith of the England managers he has played under.

Kane should play, but I think he will start on the bench