Bale blasts, I'm not a greedy footballer, I play the way I want

Gareth Bale laughed off claims that he is a "ball-hog" and insisted that he plays football the way he wants, regardless of what others say.

The Real Madrid attacker has been criticised for opting to shoot instead of passing to team-mates in apparently better positions at points this season and is said to be too greedy on the ball.

However, the Wales international maintained that he is a team player and insisted that he creates goals as well as scores them.

"People have their own opinions and that’s how they make their living," he said on El Larguero. "I think that when I’m playing I set goals up, and I score them too. I play football my way. That’s what I like."

Bale was notably criticised on the field by Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo during a 2-1 loss to Valencia, but the world's most expensive player has defended his decision making in that moment.

"Against Valencia, all I can remember is that I was going through on goal and I wanted to score ... and if I had scored nobody would have talked about it again. But I didn’t see him and it would have been a difficult pass. But it’s part of football and that’s that.

"As you get close to the goal you want to score, but sometimes it doesn’t come off. How you deal with it is how you show your character as a player."

The 25-year-old has played 28 times for Madrid in all competitions so far this season and has scored 14 goals plus contributed seven further assists.