Gareth Bale

[FightingIllini]

The guy is simply and purely a football mercenary

I'm not sure that's fair.

Bale's always struck me as a pretty airy, happy-go-lucky kinda guy, very different from the sort of driven psychos that succeed in top level sport.

Harry Redknapp's Tottenham was the perfect environment for a personality like that to flourish and grow, and once he got on top he thought playing for the biggest club in the world seemed like a cool adventure, so off he went.

And it went pretty well! He's a top player. But eventually a situation full of dominant personalities just kinda ate him up. He was just never the kind of person to be the galvanizing central figure and leader for a global sporting institution on and off the pitch.

I'm sure he's pissed off and feels wronged by Zidane, and he's not going to take a massive pay cut to help out the parties he blames for his problems, but more than anything I think he just wants to play regular football in an environment where everybody likes him again. China offers him that.

 

[pipes]

I find that unbelievable but thankfully because Harry is hopefully the kind of sportsman that Bale obviously isn't that situation should never arise. Some seek personal career fulfillment...and others seek a bulging bank balance. Bale has done so much in the game and is still capable of doing more but he has sold himself and lost any respect I ever had for him as a person (note, not as a player).

As much as I don't particularly like the guy I am sure Eden Hazard could have done the same but he chose to pit his wits and talent in La Liga and for that he has my admiration.

Where could Bale go on anywhere near his present salary, that would allow his career an upward trajectory from four Champions League titles? Where’s the career fulfilment to be found in getting knocked out of the quarters playing for Bayern but winning the league at an absolute canter?

 

[Borodin55]

They said he same about Beckham going to MLS. Now, with the benefit of hindsight, it’s tough to look upon that move as nothing but a success for him, his team and US “soccer” as a whole.

I for one, hope that Bale going to China has the same positive effect on the game over there and we can look back on this as being a positive move.

Please don't tell me Beckham went over there to be some sort of saintly pioneer for the game. He saw a massively profitable financial opportunity and grabbed it with both hands. This is not being cynical, it's being realistic. It's the same with Bale.

 

[Bazali]

I don’t recall that.

As far as I remember, Bale did not have any interviews with the press, did not make public statements over his contract, and kept quiet throughout the summer. So much so that some Spurs fans - myself included - dared to hope/dream he might not leave. He allowed Levy and consequently Spurs to extract the maximum in terms of transfer fee.

Berbatov was another thing altogether; he, through his agent, frequently made overtures to the press on how he wanted to go elsewhere. The season had started and we had also lost Keane who upped sticks and ran to Liverpool, and that c*nt Berbatov refused to play for us. If Bale had started the season with us before the transfer window closed, I could not imagine him behaving the same way.

The two players are worlds apart in that respect.

Perhaps Berba was worse but I remember reading about Bales behaviour at the time and not being impressed

 

[Borodin55]

I'm not sure that's fair.

Bale's always struck me as a pretty airy, happy-go-lucky kinda guy, very different from the sort of driven psychos that succeed in top level sport.

Harry Redknapp's Tottenham was the perfect environment for a personality like that to flourish and grow, and once he got on top he thought playing for the biggest club in the world seemed like a cool adventure, so off he went.

And it went pretty well! He's a top player. But eventually a situation full of dominant personalities just kinda ate him up. He was just never the kind of person to be the galvanizing central figure and leader for a global sporting institution on and off the pitch.

I'm sure he's pissed off and feels wronged by Zidane, and he's not going to take a massive pay cut to help out the parties he blames for his problems, but more than anything I think he just wants to play regular football in an environment where everybody likes him again. China offers him that.

So in other words if I offered him £2m a week to come and play in my back garden he would do that ?

 

[Bazali]

So, your family comes first hey Gareth?
I'm sure your 2 daughters will benefit massively from a move half way round the world to a country with a language that none of you speak.
I'm sure both sets of grandparents didn't want to watch them grow up anyway.
This move is purely for family reasons and has nothing to do with money, i'm sure you would have gone if they offered you 100k a week.
Greedy Twat.

And from what I can gather he hasn’t made much effort to learn Spanish in the years he’s spent there

Shame he didn’t put as much effort into that as he did lowering his golf handicap

 

[FightingIllini]

Please don't tell me Beckham went over there to be some sort of saintly pioneer for the game. He saw a massively profitable financial opportunity and grabbed it with both hands. This is not being cynical, it's being realistic. It's the same with Bale.

Beckham and his family had interests beyond the game of football. And MLS offered that. Beckham is now the owner of a new MLS team in Miami, which will eventually double as a multi-billion dollar real estate development scheme. For some, that's a better outcome than being King of Manchester.

*Most* people who have what it takes to succeed in the incredibly selective and demanding and brutally competitive world of elite football end up by virtue of what it takes having fairly similar personality types. But not everybody.

 

[pipes]

Please don't tell me Beckham went over there to be some sort of saintly pioneer for the game. He saw a massively profitable financial opportunity and grabbed it with both hands. This is not being cynical, it's being realistic. It's the same with Bale.

Beckham always said he wanted to raise the profile of the game there. Not for a second suggesting he didn’t benefit personally, but if he said he was going for altruistic reasons, who are we to say he’s talking shite?

Maybe Bale will show himself to be a money grabbing wanker, but in my eyes he’s innocent until proven guilty.

 

[superstaryid]

So in other words if I offered him £2m a week to come and play in my back garden he would do that ?

Put the offer in.

 

[pipes]

And from what I can gather he hasn’t made much effort to learn Spanish in the years he’s spent there

Shame he didn’t put as much effort into that as he did lowering his golf handicap

There are numerous interviews out there with team mates and journalists that confirm he speaks decent Spanish. Just doesn’t like doing it in public and is quite introverted.

 

[Borodin55]

Put the offer in.

Fortunately there is a platform for people who simply seek to compare their sporting abilities against others of similar competitive nature without financial gain being a primary driving force. It's called The Olympic Games and whilst many competitors may later turn professional that initial principle of competing purely for the love of it is something to be proud of and admired.

The idea of Bale being some sort of footballing missionary and not really concerned about the money is quite simply absurd. He doesn't give a shit about the future of Chinese football. Let's get real here for fuck's sake.

 

[superstaryid]

Fortunately there is a platform for people who simply seek to compare their sporting abilities against others of similar competitive nature without financial gain being a primary driving force. It's called The Olympic Games and whilst many competitors may later turn professional that initial principle of competing purely for the love of it is something to be proud of and admired.

The idea of Bale being some sort of footballing missionary and not really concerned about the money is quite simply absurd. He doesn't give a shit about the future of Chinese football. Let's get real here for fuck's sake.

Newsflash - Ndombele doesn't give a shit about the long term future of Tottenham or English football.

 

[Borodin55]

Newsflash - Ndombele doesn't give a shit about the long term future of Tottenham or English football.

Yeah, good constructive comment. Notice he didn't fuck off to China for megabucks but chose to play in the heat and pressure of the most competitive league in the World regardless of his motives for doing so. Whole world of difference. So whilst Bale goes around the Chinese car dealers buying his 14th Ferrari we find Ndombele battling it out against Man Utd on a cold Winters night in December. Now which one should I respect the most

 

[superstaryid]

Yeah, good constructive comment. Notice he didn't fuck off to China for megabucks but chose to play in the heat and pressure of the most competitive league in the World regardless of his motives for doing so. Whole world of difference. So whilst Bale goes around the Chinese car dealers buying his 14th Ferrari we find Ndombele battling it out against Man Utd on a cold Winters night in December. Now which one should I respect the most

Notice he hasn't won 4 champions leagues and wasn't being forced out of one of the biggest players in sport at 30 .

Ps Ndombele will be also driving a supercar and Vale will be playing on cold winter nights in China so that part is irrelevant.

 

[Borodin55]

Notice he hasn't won 4 champions leagues and wasn't being forced out of one of the biggest players in sport at 30 .

That gives him 8 years to go...let's compare then shall we ? Yep Bale has been forced out I totally agree but it's his choice which door he chooses next and he took the soft option....end of.
I am not arguing over his ability...simply his choice of where he chooses to display it and why.

 

[superstaryid]

That gives him 8 years to go...let's compare then shall we ? Yep Bale has been forced out I totally agree but it's his choice which door he chooses next and he took the soft option....end of.

But you don't know the options, do you?

 

[RESPECT THE COCK]

So in other words if I offered him £2m a week to come and play in my back garden he would do that ?

I am both disappointed for and with him.

 

[FightingIllini]

Spurs fans shouldn't be this shitty to Bale. Watching his evolution was so much fun.

 

[Pippins]

There are numerous interviews out there with team mates and journalists that confirm he speaks decent Spanish. Just doesn’t like doing it in public and is quite introverted.

Just a thought, but maybe he can't be too successful in Spain cos he's not Spanish French Brazilian or Argentinean, naah that's being cynical. If Real are falling apart maybe we can persuade Modric to come back

 

[Borodin55]

But you don't know the options, do you?

Okay, China was the only offer that came in.....that's because he wouldn't take a pay cut. He determined his own fate by his own greed. This discussion is going nowhere...we will agree to disagree but let me know when Bale's new team next features on Sky Sports so I can watch him play.