'Ronaldo's time is coming to an end, Bale is the man to take over'

The Welshman is ready to replace the Portuguese as Real Madrid's talisman, John Hartson said, speaking at the The Red Dragon pub as part of Carlsberg’s ‘Pubstitutions’ campaign

Former Wales international John Hartson thinks it is only a matter of time before Gareth Bale usurps Cristiano Ronaldo as Real Madrid's talismanic figure.

Bale is expected play a key part in Wales' Euro 2016 campaign off the back of an impressive Champions League-winning season for Los Blancos in which he scored 19 goals and notched 15 assists in 31 games.

Similarly, Cristiano Ronaldo continued his outstanding goalscoring form last season by netting 51 goals and 15 assists in 48 games, but Hartson believes the scene is set for Bale to eventually take over from the Portuguese as the leading light at the Bernabeu.

"First of all he's not a centre forward, he's someone that plays wide but I'm sure they'll want to keep hold of him," said Hartson speaking at the The Red Dragon pub as part of Carlsberg’s ‘Pubstitutions’ campaign.

"He's won two Champions Leagues in three years. I'm sure they'll want to keep hold of him due to his age, his quality. He's had a remarkable start to his career in2 Spain. I think Real Madrid will want to keep him because of the impact he's had and of course Ronaldo has been absolutely phenomenal, the goals he's scored have been freakish.

Ronaldo, 31, recently said he wants to retire at Real Madrid and continue playing until he's 40-years-old following rumours linking him with a summer transfer to Paris-Saint German. 

However, Hartson believes that Bale's time in the spotlight will come before then.

"I've got all the respect in the world for all the goals and hat-tricks, but if you look at their ages and in terms of going forward; having a marquee signing, having a shirt seller - everything comes to an end.

"Gareth might well be the man to take over the mantle of that superstar role if he's not already it. He has the potential go on and achieve what Ronaldo has done. If he can get anywhere close to him it will be incredible."

John Hartson met Wales fans at The Red Dragon pub in Wrexham as part of Carlsberg’s ‘Pubstitutions' campaign. Follow @CarlsbergUK to discover how Carlsberg will be substituting the ordinary for the extraordinary for football fans in the build-up to the tournament.