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Bale Has More To Do Before He Outgrows Spurs

5 min read
by The Fighting Cock
It has been one of those weekends; actually it’s been one of those summers. Everything to do with Spurs has been analysed, inspected and the rumours have been incessant. Roberto Soldado is set to join, Emmanuel Adebayor is off to Turkey, and predictably Gareth Bale is set to become the world’s most expensive player. For […]

bale man cityIt has been one of those weekends; actually it’s been one of those summers. Everything to do with Spurs has been analysed, inspected and the rumours have been incessant. Roberto Soldado is set to join, Emmanuel Adebayor is off to Turkey, and predictably Gareth Bale is set to become the world’s most expensive player.

For most of the summer I have allowed the rumours and the nonsense to wash over me. On my way home from work the BT Sport posters, the PS3 covers and various internet stories have failed to elicit a response, until today. Until David Hynter’s article headlined: Gareth Bale’s ability and ambition mean he has outgrown Tottenham appeared on my screen.

It was the straw that broke the camels back, that ridiculous sentence: He has outgrown Spurs….Bale needs to leave because he has outgrown us, really? Really?

I have had a strong affection for our former full-back, winger and now penetrative number 10 for years. I remember his debut, all hair, ears and speed. I remember the free kick he scored against Arsenal and I was at White Hart Lane when he broke his losing hoodoo against Burnley.

Two years ago after recounting countless tales of Bale to my girlfriend, I finally took her to the Lane to experience the man himself. Sat on the Shelf, mere metres away from him she passed an Alan Shearer like nugget of punditry gold: “Wow, he’s fast.” With his heart shape celebration reflecting in my eyes, I nodded in agreement.

As brilliant as Bale can be though, its very naive to claim he is the finished article. Therefore Mr Hynter I have a question for you:

How has Bale outgrown us when he is still growing?

This claim that he has outgrown us must be a side affect of the long warm summer. The past seems to have been forgotten, Bale despite his heroics in 2013, was largely anonymous for most of the calendar year of 2012.

As the reign of Harry Redknapp crumbled around him, Bale was non existent. There were no last minute wündergoals where manager and player embraced, instead Spurs stuttered to a doomed 4th place, Real Madrid scouts were at Spurs, but they were watching a Croat not a Welshman.

For the start of the following season Bale picked up where he had left off, immersed in mediocrity with brief glimpses of talent. He was a player who dipped in and out of games as Spurs struggled to find form and cohesion under AVB’s new system.

The Bale that now apparently commands an £80 million plus figure didn’t truly arrive until Boxing Day when a hat-trick against a poor Aston Villa side sent him into a goal scoring frenzy.

The Welshman was an unstoppable force from January 2013 until May 2013. That’s five months, less than half a year. For a player to have outgrown a club of Tottenham’s size in 20 weeks,  Bale must have undergone some rigorous genetically modified growing.

The truth of the matter is; Bale is a fantastically gifted player capable of doing things on a pitch that very few mortals presently can, however, does this put him on a level with Cristiano Ronaldo or Leo Messi?

These are the globes two standout individuals. Footballers who have operated at such sustained a level for half a decade that it wouldn’t be beyond reason to claim they have outgrown two of the biggest teams in the world.

Bale despite his meteoric rise in form in 2013 has yet to out grow the 4th/5th best team in England. The Guardian’s article is pure sensationalism that has made me take not only the bait, but the whole rod, fisherman’s arm and boat.

Before Bale can hope to usurp CR7 in Madrid he needs at least to help Spurs usurp Arsenal in North London. Great players make great teams and great players have a power to bend a team to their will and define an era.

So far Bale has defined half a season and what it takes to make up bad headlines and as Mr Hynter shows; create angles where previously there were none.

For Bale, the dream has always been Real.

He spoke warmly of the club before he faced them at the Bernabéu with Tottenham in the 2011 Champions League quarter-final, first-leg and it was a sound-bite from that interview which has resonated.

“I’m not afraid to leave the country,” Bale said. “I left home at 15 [to join Southampton’s academy]. If I leave the Premier League, I’ll learn another language … I will grow as a person.”

It’s a mark of how far Bale has come that vague comments from 2011 can be used as evidence for his love of Madrid and create headlines.

Before Bale can wear the crown of the world’s most expensive footballer, he has to earn it. The media, Twitter or his agent clamouring for this title means nothing, until he earns it.  The first step on this path is to remain White Hart Lane until he proves himself, leaving with a few PFA awards counts for nothing.

If he guides Spurs to a title tilt or a cup then perhaps he has outgrown us, but only then.

At Spurs we have regularly sold our best players, its part of what comes with failing to achieve. In my Spurs lifetime we have seen Chris Waddle, Paul Gascoigne, Dimitar Berbatov and Luka Modric all depart. However there is a clear distinction between these players and Bale.

They were players at their peak, at a club unable to sustain them or their ambitions any longer. Tottenham and Bale aren’t currently in that position. We can offer Bale the platform, we have the squad to accommodate and help him flourish, the only thing we lack is Champions League football, but that will come.

Bale is a class player but in a team that features the French captain, a Confederations cup winning midfielder who put Xavi and Iniesta in his pocket, and a couple of wondrous Belgian talents, Bale clearly has some more growing to do before he needs re-potting.

The pressure is on Bale this season, he has to perform, should he lead Spurs to some glory this season, I like a million other Spurs fans will not begrudge him a move, but first he needs to give us more than five months of brilliance.

The Spurs man needs to keep his head down, focus on the forth coming season and rather like me, avoid the nonsense spouted by Mr Hynter and the rest of the worlds sporting media.

Madrid will still be there in 2014.

He hasn’t outgrown us yet, not by a long way.

All views and opinions expressed in this article are the views and opinions of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of The Fighting Cock. We offer a platform for fans to commit their views to text and voice their thoughts. Football is a passionate game and as long as the views stay within the parameters of what is acceptable, we encourage people to write, get involved and share their thoughts on the mighty Tottenham Hotspur.

12 Comments

  1. Ben
    29/07/2013 @ 6:51 pm

    I don’t give a fuck if we had Messi. NO ONE outgrows us as the clubs is bigger than ANY one player.

    All this summer has proven to me is that sports journalism is utterly dead, especially when jobsworth mugs like that other Guardian idiot try to justify lack of quotes. For me it has nothing to do with whether there are quotes or not I’m utterly sick of reporters who are supposed to REPORT the news trying to MAKE the news. Marca bullshits it’s way through Bale fairytales, English media report Marca and add their own bullshit twist, Marca report the bullshit twists and add more, etc, etc, etc. I have more respect for football bloggers now than I do for so called professionals

  2. Nicholson 61
    29/07/2013 @ 7:03 pm

    Good Piece!

    And I have a suspicion that Bale know’s this too!

    He will get his move to Madrid in the Summer of 2015. When he has matured even
    more, in every way! Time for him and his family to prepare properly and with a
    few trophy’s and winners medals to his name, to boot!!

    He knows by staying at WHL, with AVB and an improving squad of players will
    prepare him well/better for the move abroad. Lets just hope he and his agent aren’t
    left in a room on their own for to long!!

    COYS!!

  3. BBoyEdgy
    29/07/2013 @ 7:18 pm

    Excellent article. Yeah I think 5 months of excellent form is about right.

  4. Luke
    29/07/2013 @ 7:29 pm

    Great article, very well put

  5. Jim
    29/07/2013 @ 7:50 pm

    Maybe he’ll stay for 3 more seasons and then leave on a Bosman. Hopefully not to Arsenal.

    Seriously, he’ll only be 27 then, and on a free transfer could make a mint.

    Also bear in mind playing for Wales he may seldom, if ever, reach World Cups or European Championships. Don’t think Ryan Giggs ever did.

    So Champions League going to be hugely important to him.

  6. Mike H
    29/07/2013 @ 7:56 pm

    Brilliant article and I just wish Gareth could read it somehow. I just hope some of the idiots don’t get on his back as he needs support from us not frustration. That should be aimed at those so called writers of crap that make up all the BULLSHIT just to sell a story. Having heard Michael Owens comments Madrid isn’t a bed of roses and their fans can be exceptionally critical so quickly.

    Lets hope the supposed “new contract” being discussed rewards him for the 5 months of excellence and it also keeps his agent sweet. This time next year when we’re in the champions league and the goners are pissed off then we can cheer him off in style.

    Give us 1 year and prove to the world that you repay loyalty to those that placed it with you!

  7. JimmyG
    29/07/2013 @ 8:15 pm

    Of course I agree wholeheartedly. I think most Spurs fans will agree that as good as Bale was last season, there are still plenty of moments he frustrates the heck out of us. When a player starts to think he’s special, more often than not he becomes all the more selfish and so does the decision making, both on and off the field.
    Here’s a thought though, surely it would be in Tottenham’s interest to hold onto Bale for one more season, wether he plays to last seasons standards or not. It’s been widely reported that Suarez is Madrid’s second choice signing. If they can’t have Bale for another 12 months they will pay the fee that Liverpool require thus removing all chances of Arsenal signing him, rendering both Arsenal AND Liverpool weaker for the season ahead. Tottenham would stand every chance of qualifying for the champions league once more after which Bale can make up his mind if Real really is his boyhood club. Any which way Spurs come out on top.

  8. lillywhite310
    29/07/2013 @ 8:36 pm

    I think it would be fantastic business if we sold him for £80m+. Just look at when Man United sold Ronaldo for £80m, were’nt such a disaster was it? Let the lad go and good luck to him. Think of the players that we can strengthen with, a big squad with quality players is essential in the premier league these days. So as much as I’ve enjoyed watching Bale up to now, I’m looking forward to watching my beloved spurs playing beautiful football next season. With or without Bale we will still be a top side, capable of winning trophies. Take the money and invest and thank Bale for all he has given us thus far!

  9. darren
    29/07/2013 @ 11:26 pm

    Absolutely, biggest difference he hasn’t had a nasty tackle that has led to a long lay off. In the past seasons whenever he has come back from one he hasn’t been himself and has looked scared of getting another knock. I personally i think he’ll stay, but if he goes like gazza, Carrick, berbatov or modric, we will just move on and accept it happens, because its just one player. No one is bigger than the club

  10. Nicholson 61
    30/07/2013 @ 12:12 am

    I replied to this (excellent) article several hours ago and several beers later, I feel compelled
    to reply again!!

    I truly believe Bale himself, would agree with this article! He is a modest and understated lad!
    Of course, anyone of us in our professions would be flattered and have our ego’s inflated
    from head-hunters at the top of our game!

    He is a young man that has been cocooned in a world (from a very early age) that you and
    I, can and do, only dream of!

    Firstly as we all know, the vast majority of headlines and comments, we have all read, are
    bollocks!! He pays and puts faith into his agent! His agent is a business man, a bean counter!
    If his agent has Bale’s and Bale’s family at Heart, he will know, that a move to Madrid now
    is not the right time. GB ain’t ready just yet and nor are his young family! BUT! as a business
    man, we must not let on to this fact Gareth! Leave the talking to me! An I,ll get us both an
    extra few quid!!

    An this is how it will play out! Bale has not commented because of the faith (24!!) he has in his
    agents advice! A little dance around will be done, Bale and his agent, will earn! DL will come
    out looking strong and majestic! You and I will witness exquisite, glorious, entertaining,
    triumphant (top 3) football this coming season at the glorious Lane!

    Point of this whole half pi**ed passionate ramble is…………………

    When that boy walks out at Selhurst Park or The Lane! Let all of us realize and understand
    that he was tight-lipped (which is always confusing and frustrating, as a supporter)
    because he was advised to be! And I am 100% certain, if this 24 year old had his own way,
    he would have and eventually will, pledge his love an loyalty to THFC and AVB!

    Point being, lets sing his name to the rafters, along with all the rest of the quality we
    have on the pitch!

    I have just read this back and I can not see a typo anywhere! Not bad after 4 Special Brews!!

    Round of applause please!

    COYS!!

  11. victor
    30/07/2013 @ 10:11 am

    Spurs nurtured and had faith with Bale. Bale has to give back to Spurs. Mr Levy and AVB is now doing the next thing to do, in having bought quality players in Paulinho and Chadli to Spurs. C’mon Bale give it back to Spurs. Spurs may not be the biggest club in the worls, but Spurs is a big enough global club, and a Happy well run club. Do your bit now, move with AVB, Mr Levy and us FANS to move Spurs to a championship club. Spurs can be there.

  12. Dave
    30/07/2013 @ 10:20 am

    On balance, Bale has to go. £90 million for a bloke who has had one (very) good season with an ambitious club is an offer too good to refuse. When Real bought Ronaldo, he had proved himself with one of the biggest clubs in the world, winning the Premiership and the CL. At Spurs, Bale is a big fish in a smaller pond; we don’t know how he will cope with the pressure, or even whether he can live up to expectations next year. If Real are insane enough to pay that kind of money, then Levy would be equally nuts to not accept. He’s holding out for a better deal. As long as it goes on transfers, what can you complain about? The sooner it’s done the better, so AVB has more time in the transfer market.

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