This article is part of Football FanCast's Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba's haircuts to League Two relegation battles...

After a small period that can only be described as the calm before the storm, the usual roller coaster that is Gareth Bale's career at Real Madrid is now back in full force.

Even though it did seem like his fortune might be turning at the beginning of the ongoing 2019/20 La Liga season, he's now practically back to where he was a couple of months ago - blacklisted and awaiting a potential transfer in the near future.

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At least that's what the recent reports coming from AS are suggesting and seeing how he's almost missed the same amount of games he's played this season so far, this wouldn't really be that big of a surprise if it came true.

But one thing that somehow kept Real Madrid second-guessing their decision to let the 30-year-old Welshman go was their inability to find him a suitable replacement, as the same source suggests as well.

After all, when he was fit and motivated, just like it was the case at the beginning of the campaign, he immediately proved that there is still quality in his feet.

In the first three games of the new season, Bale bagged two goals and one assist to his name but as his absences started mounting, the general contribution dipped significantly.

Since then, he only managed to register one more assist but that was mostly it as far as his performances went.

Watch Lionel Messi and Gareth Bale answer the internet's weirdest questions in the video below...

But looking at Los Blancos's squad that they have on their hands, the fear of losing someone as influential as Bale should not be that big.

The main reason for that is actually the 18-year-old prodigy, Rodrygo.

Interestingly enough, in Real Madrid's last Champions League clash, it was the young Brazilian who replaced Bale on the pitch and on that right-wing and needless to say, he made a big statement with his display.

This should be extremely encouraging for Zinedine Zidane since between Rodrygo and Vinicius Junior, the Welshman's spot seems rather well covered for the future.

Of course, we are talking about extremely young players replacing a veteran of the game but they've already proved to their coach they can be counted on.

If the Galacticos really want to offload Bale, now is the right time to do it - he is still worth £54m according to Transfermarkt, his unhappiness at the club is not really news anymore and most importantly, there are people capable of replacing him once he leaves.

All things considered, Real Madrid can finally afford to part ways with their outcast and live to tell the tale.

Let's see if they finally decide to pull the trigger.