Just How Good is Gareth Bale?

I’ve been meaning to write this article for some time, and with goal nets in the Midlands and East Anglia still rippling from Gareth Bale wonder goals, when better to dissect the merits of our favourite Welshman? Still, part of me wonders if my timing is actually a bit off; I wouldn’t want this to be seen as one of those reactionary football pieces (heaven forbid!) Because you see, my opinion of the quality of the player hasn’t really changed all season.

So, the £50m question (or £55m… £60m… €60m?): just how good is Gareth Bale? It’s a topic that has been fiercely debated by fans of all clubs, particularly since his landmark performances against Inter Milan two years ago. One word that is frequently dredged up by embittered fans of rival teams and rational thinking, good sorts alike is ‘overrated’. This is one of my least favourite words, incidentally, primarily because it gives next to no indication of how good said player actually is, but also because it suggests a universally agreed rating for said player, and usually supposes this rating to be so unrealistically high that next to nobody actually agrees with it in the first place, completely undermining their use of the term.

[linequote]One word that is frequently dredged up by embittered fans of rival teams and rational thinking, good sorts alike is ‘overrated’.[/linequote]

So – and I hope I’m not being too controversial here – I’m going to make an assertion: Gareth Bale is not in the same class as Messi or Ronaldo (or Ronessi, as they are never collectively known). Let’s all agree on that, OK? Those two are a cut above the rest at the moment. Personally, I would argue that to place Bale in next level down from Ronessi is by no means ridiculous. He has the all round game and an additional aura about him (he can do things that nobody else can) that I reckon deserves the tag ‘World Class’ – whatever that means.

But I’m not going to defend that claim here. I’m going to defend another one. Get ready for more controversy: Gareth Bale is Tottenham Hotspur’s best player. That’s right, I went there! The race for the coveted ‘Player of the Year’ gong at Spurs has been hotly contested. Sandro’s bid has been derailed by injury, while Hugo Lloris could yet be a dark horse. Events of the past week have, by my reckoning, nudged Bale ahead of Aaron Lennon on the current leaderboard. Perhaps next week he will be overtaken.

[linequote]He has the all round game and an additional aura about him. He can do things that nobody else can.[/linequote]

No matter. Bale is now the undisputed star of this side, and that sort of thing doesn’t change on a game-by-game basis. I’ve heard it claimed that other individuals (Dembele or Lennon, for instance) are more influential – more important in helping the team get results. Here I must respectfully disagree. Certainly, there are games when Bale is not the most important factor, the reason Spurs are or are not doing well. But over the course of a season I’d wager that we’d miss Bale’s input more than anyone’s were he not present. Not just his individual goals and assists, which often come against big teams or in tight games (he has scored for Spurs in wins against Man United, Chelsea, Arsenal, Liverpool…), but the affect he has on the opposition’s thinking and the space he creates for others by continuously being double-marked. Basically, he has an aura – a star power that only two or three players in the league possess. Ask any opposition fan about an upcoming game against Spurs and they will invariably answer along the lines of ‘well, if we can keep Bale quiet…’

Those who refuse to accept Bale as one of the very best (even discounting Ronessi, as you have my permission to do – those guys are crazy good) can surely only do so on the grounds of consistency, as the ability is undoubtedly there. In spades.

There’s the thunderous left foot shot, demonstrated to great effect last week. There’s the thunderous right foot shot too; oft overlooked and admittedly less dependable, but nonetheless put to goal-scoring use several times this season (see Arsenal, Man United away). His crossing has always been a highlight (the fizzing ball for Lennon’s tap-in against Liverpool was immaculate), his heading ought to be considered a highlight (his long-ranger at Southampton the pick of the bunch), and he can pull off the Hollywood skills during games, if that’s your thing (the pirouette at Leeds being the most recent example).

He’s proven he can do pretty much all the things top quality attackers can, and not just in the way that Kyle Walker has proven he can take an unstoppable free-kick; Bale has done all the above on numerous occasions (though each occasion is quickly forgotten by the tenacious ‘only two good games against Inter’ brigade, naturally). And I haven’t even mentioned his main assets: pace, power, acceleration and the ability to beat a man or six with a speedy dribble.

Of course, this sort of thing gets taken for granted after a while, but another moment that makes us all sit up and appreciate the special talent he has always seems to be just around the corner. Even in his quiet games, Bale will do at least one thing that’s a bit special. A brilliant goal or a decisive assist, perhaps. A barnstorming run past defenders or a shot that forces a wonder save from the keeper, at worst. Look out for it next time you think he’s started slowly.

[linequote]Even in his quiet games, Bale will do at least one thing that’s a bit special.[/linequote]

Statistics shouldn’t be completely ignored – and Bale’s stats have been steadily improving season on season – but they only tell you so much. Sometimes you can just see how good a player is. Y’know, by watching him on the pitch. It is by doing such watching that I have deduced that Gareth Bale is Tottenham’s best player. As one-time TV commentator Andy Gray put it, ‘I have never seen anybody do what he does’.

Like I said, perhaps the line between a precocious talent and a World Class one is consistency. Just how consistent a player has to be to deserve to be called the latter is a matter of personal taste, though more and more people seem to be putting Gareth Bale in that category as 2012/13 progresses. But like I also said, I’m not interested in drawing that line here. Honest. I’m fully aware that even this season there have been times when Bale has fallen below his exceptionally high standards. Times when well-drilled opposition have largely neutralised his threats. Games when you look to him to provide the spark, and wonder how a player who fails to do so can really be all he’s cracked up to be. I’m equally mindful that this will happen again at some point before the season is out. That’s football.

So where does that leave us, then? Just how good is Gareth Bale? Easy, he’s Tottenham Hotspur’s best player. Watch him play and tell me you don’t believe it. Just enjoy him tearing it up in Lilywhite, however consistently that may be. We’ll miss him when he’s gone.

[author name=”BoxBat” avatar=”https://www.thefightingcock.co.uk/forum/data/avatars/l/0/263.jpg?1349590890″ twitter=”jackedwards_” tag=”BoxBat[/linequote]