Good morning.
Watching Gareth Bale yesterday reminded of me of a stage that small children get as the begin to try and take control of their world. A sense of ownership and determination can be fascinating to watch as they emerge from being completely dependent and defiantly utter the words, ‘I can do it myself!’.
What usually ensues in such instances is something like the removal of a vest not by pulling it off over the head, but climbing out of it as if it were a dress. An ambitious routine that might take – minus a shoulder dislocation, falling into a TV set or home aquarium – up to ten minutes to execute a simple 10 second task.
You can’t complain of course. Everyone wants their kids to think, challenge, try things for themselves, learn and in an ideal world dress themselves sooner rather than later.
Bale was in the Telegraph on Saturday. Yesterday I called the piece ‘terrifying’. Here are some particularly chilling quotes.
“I need to improve myself as a player and I spoke to the coaches at Tottenham about it,” he says. “Being stuck outside is not good all the time. You need to mix your game up and give the opposition things to think about. It’s one of those things I wanted to do and I’m starting to do it.”
“It got to the stage last year when I was standing out on the wing, playing well, with a lot of freedom, hurting teams and being targeted by defences. So it was a case of some teams putting two players on me, staying really tight and trying to mark me out of the game, which is quite easy to do when you’re stood right out there with not much room.
“So I’ve had to adapt my game. The full-back can’t follow you inside and strikers occupy the centre-backs, so it gives you that bit of space. It’s not easy. It’s a lot tighter in the middle but if you get into lots of pockets and you’re able to turn and run at defenders it’s just as good as being out on the wing”
What we got of course was effectively an unmitigated car crash. Bale goes inside. In his head, I am convinced he’s intent upon focusing his blistering pace down the middle. In his head he’s already shaken off those nasty defenders that want to double up on him out on the wing.
In reality, outside of his head he found himself in an area congested by not only his own team mates, but their opposition counterparts who either took the ball off him with no more than the poke of a toe or he is forced into a short, largely redundant pass.
Does anyone remember Darren Anderton also wanting to revolutionise football at White Hart Lane by playing out of position?
The knock on effect of Bale being in the middle was equally surreal.
With arguably one of the best players in the country safely out of position we are then treated to BAE morphing into A&E with some of the worst crossing since The Cassandra Crossing. The knives were out for Benny. I lost count of the substandard scuffs he under hit into Man City shins.
How many balls crossed in by Bale himself would have resulted in threats on goal? My rough estimate would have to be, ‘lots’.
Is this playing to our strengths? Is this arrogance? Is Arry so wrapped up in his court case that he’s given up managing his players and letting them dictate how we play?
And my fear is that the goal – in Gareth’s head – justified the means. The ‘look at me, look at me, Christ is risen.’ style celebration left me feeling a little uncomfortable. He didn’t lift up his shirt to reveal a vest baring the words, ‘I can do it myself!.’ but I’m sure I heard him thinking it.
If you can’t try and take on the world on your own at aged 22 then when can you? :)
This article is ‘terryfing’. How can you get on the back of one of the best players we’ve had at the lane for years! We had to play that way as we didn’t have a front man, what point is there whipping balls in to the vertically challenged Defoe and VDV!!
Disappointing article. I expect better from you Harry. I don’t comment on your articles, but this time I felt I had to, to defend a Totenham Hotspur player. I thought the lads were amazing, there’s just no pleasing some Spurs fans. Get behind the team!!
COYS!!!!!
May i remind my fellow fans and H.H. Bales hero is Giggs and he wanders all over the place and scored some cracking goals. What i want you to do is don’t judge Bale on Barry and Milners showing i have told you many many times what is going on in the North West and beyond. This is what is happening City are being protected from testing and they can raise there game any way they choose Kolo will not happen again on Bernstiens watch. Just look at a few things the elbow the stamp the the way City overexcited players acted when Lescott scored all this was all down to the sixth gear. The evidence are on the gaunt looking faces caused by this extra running you wont believe me when i warned you what is happening where i live in the North West. The only players apart from Mutu all come from Manchester Ferdinand and Toure and the other one is a team who play City on Wednesday watch that game and you will see 6th gear all over the pitch and gaunt faces. When the team who played with elbows and had a terrible disciplinary was reported for Ephedrine abuse the head of the FA was a supporter of this club and it was brushed aside and hidden. Later he was sacked and his now on the board of his club now Toure failed a drugs test he got a paltry six month ban he missed four games how many points did he gain with is extra defending with energy drugsan help us beat this saturated defending buy hitting his missile passes with back spin over the top of defenders and through balls for Bale too run onto if he is fully mended. I cant wait for this because its vital if want to stay in the top four or beyond. We will face this extra energy boost from here on in and draws and points will be very hard to get especially in the North west where bot of our great runs have stopped Stoke and City . This was why Pulis complained about City not being tested for drugs when City out energised Stoke at Wembley. He complained on TV his team where tested before and after the cup fimal. This was because like i told you some teams use the boost in both half’s and only the fear of deaths and illness has meant some teams only using it at half time hence the Jeckle and Hyde performances. This is our biggest danger in our last 17 or so games left and Everton Liverpool Bolton Sunderland will be far harder and just has dirty has the City game we have too be ready for this 6th gear especially at Everton and Liverpool.
Too busy with a bunch of utter shit to write something better but I think you’re being harsh HH. There is a valid point in there somewhere, I admit, but I think you are overreacting. Bale has said and done almost entirely the right things so far. He is too talented to “just” be a winger for the rest of his career. I concede there is a danger, but Gareth – at least up until now – has earned the benefit of the doubt based on the way he has conducted himself through the last 18 months.
Where was VDV in that game anyway? Bale almost won us a point – and then almost won us three points. Wish he had made the early pass but…he certainly did his part on Sunday.
The only ego on show here is the ego of the nob who wrote this article.