Burley admits to Bale worries
George Burley admits he is worried that Gareth Bale may suffer from burn-out.
Southampton manager George Burley says he will have to treat teen sensation Gareth Bale with caution due to his increasing exposure to international football.The Saints left back became Wales' youngest ever goalscorer on Saturday with their solitary goal in the 5-1 defeat to Slovakia, and looks set to win his fourth cap in Cardiff on Wednesday in the Euro 2008 qualifier against Cyprus.
At just 17 years of age Bale has already garnered a rapidly expanding reputation and has been linked with Premiership club Arsenal as he continues to shine for both club and country.
His superb free kick against Slovakia was another keen indication of his deep potential, but Saints boss Burley has admitted his concerns that Bale will suffer from burn-out if he continues to be used on such a regular basis.
"I see his free kicks all the time in training so it didn't surprise me to be honest. But we've got to keep an eye on that situation," Burley told the Southern Daily Echo.
"He played 90 minutes at wing back on Saturday, which is a foreign position, and looks like he'll be involved on Wednesday.
"We have to keep an eye on him because he's just turned 17 and it's a lot.
"For our last game against QPR he was outstanding, and that was because we had taken him out for a while and he came back really strong.
"It's asking a lot at this stage of his career for him to play two full international games and then come back and play for us on the Saturday."
