Gareth Bale explains the reason behind Jose Mourinho owning a t-shirt with four Tottenham players on it.

Tottenham Hotspur have welcomed talent from around the world in recent years, with several big names donning the iconic Lilywhite shirt. Among them is Gareth Bale, who is one of the few to have enjoyed two separate spells at the club—first as a rising star before making a then-world record move to Real Madrid in 2013, and later returning on loan in 2020.

During his second stint, Bale reconnected with Tottenham and formed new friendships, including with then-manager Jose Mourinho and Korean forward Heung-min Son—bonds that extended beyond the pitch.

Bale wasn’t the only Welsh player at Spurs during that period. Ben Davies and Joe Rodon were also part of both the club and the national team setup. In a recent podcast with Cam, Bale revealed how Heung-min Son became part of their close-knit group, along with the story behind the so-called “Welsh Mafia.”

“Sonny is an honorary member,” Bale said. When asked whether Lucas Moura was involved, he replied, “Oh no, he has just got his own one.”

Bale went on to praise Son’s loyalty and career at Tottenham: “Sonny deserved to be able to lift a trophy, an amazing career at Tottenham and a loyal servant. Sonny is basically half Welsh.”

When asked how the “Welsh Mafia” started, Bale admitted, “I do not actually know who started it. It was basically me, Joe, and Ben—obviously together for a while with Wales—and then Sonny was very close to Ben. So when me and Joe came in, we were kind of just a group and basically hung around 24/7 with each other. We just came close and we became the Welsh Mafia. It was like a boy band. It was good.”

Recalling Mourinho’s involvement, Bale added, “I think Jose Mourinho got a shirt as well. It was like all our silhouettes on a T-shirt with ‘Welsh Mafia’ at the top. I actually still have it at home.”