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Gareth Bale

Re: Gareth Bale

NWND said:
Good post. It will be so sad not seeing Bale in a Spurs shirt. He is now a global superstar and icon. He is a galactico. He's such a dedicated grounded pro too, who works at his game and seems to have a new string to his bow every season. Unfortunately his head has obviously been turned by the massive will of Real to get their man.

We can't realistically fight it. If Man U couldn't with Ronaldo we sure didn't have a chance. What we appear to have done is make sure we get the best possible deal for the club.

Willian is a creative player we needed and if we pull Lamela off as well he does have the potential to be another superstar. It's been an insane summer, one that I can't remember ever experiencing. Nor do I expect to again. At the end we will have a team and squad full of options without an identifiable weakness. Like you though when we are bulldozing teams part of me will miss the Bale star-dust, the arrogant stance on the ball, the crowd rising in expectation, the long-range shots, the flicks, the free-kicks! He was what Spurs are all about
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You responded to one great post with another. Love that bolded phrase, gets to the nub.
 
Re: Gareth Bale

Sorry if this has already been posted but apparently this was Bale arriving at training today..

BSHcGr7IgAAwLpN.jpg
 
Re: Gareth Bale

With all of this activity today.....imagine for a minute......just a minute, that Bale is still a Spurs player on the 2nd September...

......it takes you to a happy place and puts a smile on your face, doesn't it?
 
Re: Gareth Bale

I was one of those people that thought we were spending to try and convince Bale to stay one more year and have a proper stab at getting champions league with him and the newbies but with the Willian and Lamela rumours, if true, I think it's fairly obvious that we are replacing Bale up front, which is the best way to do it and if Coentrao comes as part of the deal I'd personally be delighted with our business. Not the fact that we are selling Bale but if we have to sell then getting a group like those that are rumoured as replacements would make us better than last year.

Exciting times to be a Spurs fan!
 
Re: Gareth Bale

braineclipse said:
I actually disagree with quite a lot of that.

The club is bigger than Bale.

If we improve as a team, as you say we might very well do, and as a result push on to qualify for the CL and get close to a title fight this season or next I think those two things will give us more exposure than Bale.

Lamela and Willian are not at Bale's level in terms of exposure or unquantifiable elements at this point, but that's not to say they never will be. Bale himself was nowhere near his current level of unquantifiableness a year ago.

United signed RvP because of what he does on the pitch. He was the best player in the league and available, they could sign him, that's all.

Liverpool failed because they failed with their new signings. That might happen to us too of course, but it might not.

Porto is not a good example at all. Clubs like Porto and Benfica struggle to grow because they're in the Portuguese league, not because of their transfer strategy imo.
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I totally agree the club is bigger than Bale. My point being that in losing players like Bale, especially in the eyes of the 99.9% of the worlds football consuming population looking from the outside in who are not Tottenham fans like us looking from the inside out, we unfortunately also lose the ability to be something bigger, more special to them. In todays world, that is crucial.

It has been identified time and time again, none better than at Tottenham itself. "The game is about glory", "Better to fail aiming high, than to succeed aiming low". That is infinitely more true now than ever. Look at what the world watches on YouTube. It's not Micheal Carricks excellent positioning and distribution. Its the things that raise the hairs on the back of your neck. Madrid correctly pinpointed the essence of what footballing glory and excitement is in todays quick consumption, reflected glory world and acted spectacularly upon it with the Galicticos plan. They have scraped one Champions League, (partially) with this plan at the very outset, and not really very much since. In fact, from a certain point of view it has not worked on the pitch, and even looks a little gaudy to "proper" football supporters. But despite this, despite Barca being better for a long time now, Real are still regarded as the most glamorous, glorious club in world football, and post turnover figures commensurate with this.

Only the unusual and relatively sudden success of La Masia and the extraordinary luck of having arguably the greatest player ever blossom for them keeps Barca a nose ahead on the pitch, and remotely in touch for the affections of the masses.

Indeed, the fine lines, the fragility... luck even, of the crossroads in how great things become so can be illustrated by the Premiership itself. The propensity of the English language across the world allowed the Premiership and Sky to burst forth and claim the riches of emerging Asian markets. It is arguably the defining reason for propelling itself so far ahead of other great footballing nations in terms of the share of the spoils. If Germany is able to continue offering a superior product, that playing field could change again sometime.

My point about Porto or Benfica was not regarding their potential for growth. It was to highlight the way people feel in general looking in at them after they move on the players that once attracted the gaze and excitement of the masses. They are a good example, because the model they employ (a good and necessary model, due to the constraints of their environment) gives us the chance to make a direct comparison of what happens to a club in this situation in a condensed timescale, of a season or two. They remain very good clubs and teams, often competing near the top level. But it is at the expense of ultimate glory. They, in effect, are the anti-Galacticos. It keeps them solvent, even quite near the top, but there is something deep within that which turns the majority of the casual football consuming population off. This they must begrudgingly accept that as their reality if they are to stay true to their model, and stay alive. Porto, Benfica, Ajax, Celtic. By living this existence, they will never be able to know if they can match and surpass Madrid and Barca, as they often did before the playing field of world football became altered.

The lesson in there for Tottenham is that, whilst it is patently clear we are not in the Portuguese (or Dutch, or Scottish) league, we are still similarly hamstrung, like them, by our current position below the very top table, and only something spectacular will capture the imagination to drag us up. Tottenham is less of a legendary club than Benfica, Celtic and Ajax so in adopting facets of their admittedly successful and very necessary model, how can we ever hope for a true breakthrough? They have proven conclusively that it is a model more geared for survival than crossing the event horizon, which is where Tottenham currently find themselves.

Of course, your scenario is entirely possible, also. A less spectacular team, more efficient, may have a spectacular tilt at the title. In Lamela, there could indeed be a player that stands the best chance of capturing the imagination of people as Bale does. That can happen, I don't doubt that. United lost Beckham. Ronaldo was a superstar for United later on. Things change, new heroes emerge. The thing is, no matter how good a deal it was for United, how many new heroes emerged it is the enduring image in the worlds collective mind of Real Madrid being the apex predator over United that feeds into the notion of Madrid being the greater club. The ultimate, and entirely intended, successful outworking of the Galactico policy, regardless of the trophy room.

It's a little of the chicken and the egg. If United forced Ronaldo to stay, won the Champions league, relegated and eroded Madrids myth in subsequent years, would he (or the next Ronaldo) see Madrid as preferable to United. Possibly not.

All I'm pointing out is that once -in-a-blue-moon players like Bale are really the only ones that can drastically change the fortunes, mythical or otherwise, for clubs. At this moment we have one of the only weapons that brings greater glory to sports teams: a megastar.

Granted, we have other assets. A fantastic infrastructure and team to make a good fist of it if we trade our only cow for some magic beans. But if they don't happen to grow,well, we are just the people who have lots of beans, and clubs like Madrid remain gorging on all the steak!
 
Re: Gareth Bale

SpursLodge said:
I was one of those people that thought we were spending to try and convince Bale to stay one more year and have a proper stab at getting champions league with him and the newbies but with the Willian and Lamela rumours, if true, I think it's fairly obvious that we are replacing Bale up front, which is the best way to do it and if Coentrao comes as part of the deal I'd personally be delighted with our business. Not the fact that we are selling Bale but if we have to sell then getting a group like those that are rumoured as replacements would make us better than last year.

Exciting times to be a Spurs fan!
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Agreed. Gutted that we might be losing such a talent. But rightly I don't think we are looking for a single replacement, I think as you point out there are replacements. There is a worry that Soldado, Paulinho, Chadli, Capoue and whoever else we buy within a budget of £93m, all prove to be average and not an upgrade on Defoe, or Livermore, or Townsend, or Parker. But every one of them looks as good a bet to be a success as any other import into the league this year.

For all the great goals from Bale last year, we were unbalanced and as a result a number of players did not reach their potential (while Bale perhaps overachieved?). But that is a fantastic spread of signings and bar centre back we have added quality competition or a potential upgrade on what is there.

I'm hoping we now get our first home win of the season at the weekend and follow that with three points in the derby. But I am hopeful that as the season progresses we start to see a strong, balanced team on the pitch supported by a squad with true depth. COYS.
 
Re: Gareth Bale

Phil Horatio said:
I totally agree the club is bigger than Bale. My point being that in losing players like Bale, especially in the eyes of the 99.9% of the worlds football consuming population looking from the outside in who are not Tottenham fans like us looking from the inside out, we unfortunately also lose the ability to be something bigger, more special to them. In todays world, that is crucial.

It has been identified time and time again, none better than at Tottenham itself. "The game is about glory", "Better to fail aiming high, than to succeed aiming low". That is infinitely more true now than ever. Look at what the world watches on YouTube. It's not Micheal Carricks excellent positioning and distribution. Its the things that raise the hairs on the back of your neck. Madrid correctly pinpointed the essence of what footballing glory and excitement is in todays quick consumption, reflected glory world and acted spectacularly upon it with the Galicticos plan. They have scraped one Champions League, (partially) with this plan at the very outset, and not really very much since. In fact, from a certain point of view it has not worked on the pitch, and even looks a little gaudy to "proper" football supporters. But despite this, despite Barca being better for a long time now, Real are still regarded as the most glamorous, glorious club in world football, and post turnover figures commensurate with this.

Only the unusual and relatively sudden success of La Masia and the extraordinary luck of having arguably the greatest player ever blossom for them keeps Barca a nose ahead on the pitch, and remotely in touch for the affections of the masses.

Indeed, the fine lines, the fragility... luck even, of the crossroads in how great things become so can be illustrated by the Premiership itself. The propensity of the English language across the world allowed the Premiership and Sky to burst forth and claim the riches of emerging Asian markets. It is arguably the defining reason for propelling itself so far ahead of other great footballing nations in terms of the share of the spoils. If Germany is able to continue offering a superior product, that playing field could change again sometime.

My point about Porto or Benfica was not regarding their potential for growth. It was to highlight the way people feel in general looking in at them after they move on the players that once attracted the gaze and excitement of the masses. They are a good example, because the model they employ (a good and necessary model, due to the constraints of their environment) gives us the chance to make a direct comparison of what happens to a club in this situation in a condensed timescale, of a season or two. They remain very good clubs and teams, often competing near the top level. But it is at the expense of ultimate glory. They, in effect, are the anti-Galacticos. It keeps them solvent, even quite near the top, but there is something deep within that which turns the majority of the casual football consuming population off. This they must begrudgingly accept that as their reality if they are to stay true to their model, and stay alive. Porto, Benfica, Ajax, Celtic. By living this existence, they will never be able to know if they can match and surpass Madrid and Barca, as they often did before the playing field of world football became altered.

The lesson in there for Tottenham is that, whilst it is patently clear we are not in the Portuguese (or Dutch, or Scottish) league, we are still similarly hamstrung, like them, by our current position below the very top table, and only something spectacular will capture the imagination to drag us up. Tottenham is less of a legendary club than Benfica, Celtic and Ajax so in adopting facets of their admittedly successful and very necessary model, how can we ever hope for a true breakthrough? They have proven conclusively that it is a model more geared for survival than crossing the event horizon, which is where Tottenham currently find themselves.

Of course, your scenario is entirely possible, also. A less spectacular team, more efficient, may have a spectacular tilt at the title. In Lamela, there could indeed be a player that stands the best chance of capturing the imagination of people as Bale does. That can happen, I don't doubt that. United lost Beckham. Ronaldo was a superstar for United later on. Things change, new heroes emerge. The thing is, no matter how good a deal it was for United, how many new heroes emerged it is the enduring image in the worlds collective mind of Real Madrid being the apex predator over United that feeds into the notion of Madrid being the greater club. The ultimate, and entirely intended, successful outworking of the Galactico policy, regardless of the trophy room.

It's a little of the chicken and the egg. If United forced Ronaldo to stay, won the Champions league, relegated and eroded Madrids myth in subsequent years, would he (or the next Ronaldo) see Madrid as preferable to United. Possibly not.

All I'm pointing out is that once -in-a-blue-moon players like Bale are really the only ones that can drastically change the fortunes, mythical or otherwise, for clubs. At this moment we have one of the only weapons that brings greater glory to sports teams: a megastar.

Granted, we have other assets. A fantastic infrastructure and team to make a good fist of it if we trade our only cow for some magic beans. But if they don't happen to grow,well, we are just the people who have lots of beans, and clubs like Madrid remain gorging on all the steak!
Click to expand...

A compelling post and eloquently put.
 
Re: Gareth Bale

Phil - Hypothetically speaking what's stopping Lamela (should he sign) banging in 20+ goals and having a similarly great impact for us and becoming the 'next Bale'? He's got a fantastic record at 3 years Bales junior - had he put in that level of performance in England rather than Italy maybe he'd already be the 'next big thing'

There's always a new player emerging - getting ourselves in the CL and letting Baldini do his thing from there allows us to continue sourcing players with that potential. Halilovic already touted as the next Messi - so im not quite in the once in a lifetime camp
 
Re: Gareth Bale

clownfoot said:
BBC Sport:



Begs the question, surely, why would Italian press know of this before any other country? ](*,)
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How did Sky Italia know that Guardiola was joining Bayern before anyone else back in January?
Who knows but they did they broke that story and could be breaking the Bale story.
They're a better source than some ITK.
 
Re: Gareth Bale

I think it's very clear what the manager and DL want...they have made a choice based on all the circumstances and that choice seems to have ben informed by a number of factors INCLUDING where Bale's head has been turned to (see The Exorcist -as mentioned before by me- for reference)...
 
Re: Gareth Bale

Bale might achieve more for us by leaving than he ever would by staying, that's my take on it anyway.
 
Re: Gareth Bale

Jimmy-g said:
Bale might achieve more for us by leaving than he ever would by staying, that's my take on it anyway.
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Indeed...


...of course, there's always the possibility that we will have a superb 25 man squad which includes Bale! Imagine if we kept him and did not necessarily start him all the time LOL...one thing is for sure. We have escaped being a 'one-man-team' if we sign Will.i.am too!
 
Re: Gareth Bale

thfcsteff said:
Indeed...


...of course, there's always the possibility that we will have a superb 25 man squad which includes Bale! Imagine if we kept him and did not necessarily start him all the time LOL...one thing is for sure. We have escaped being a 'one-man-team' if we sign Will.i.am too!
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I have not felt like this since Ricky and Ossie, if all this comes off we must think seriously about having a crack at the title, spending this money should make us contenders, bloody exciting times.
 
Re: Gareth Bale

Jimmy-g said:
I have not felt like this since Ricky and Ossie, if all this comes off we must think seriously about having a crack at the title, spending this money should make us contenders, bloody exciting times.
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Indeed. I don't really get people saying 'Now we can definitely make a run for the top 3!!!'

**** that. With the players are have brought in and are apparently due to bring in, we should be challenging for the title. Our squad is no worse than the others at the top of the league.
 
Re: Gareth Bale

SpursLodge said:
I was one of those people that thought we were spending to try and convince Bale to stay one more year and have a proper stab at getting champions league with him and the newbies but with the Willian and Lamela rumours, if true, I think it's fairly obvious that we are replacing Bale up front, which is the best way to do it and if Coentrao comes as part of the deal I'd personally be delighted with our business. Not the fact that we are selling Bale but if we have to sell then getting a group like those that are rumoured as replacements would make us better than last year.

Exciting times to be a Spurs fan!
Click to expand...

If Willian does come then i'm getting my '3 amigos' shirt printed up with Sandro, paulinho and willian on it and in the shop and sold in the stalls! Who would have thought 3 Brazilians at Tottenham.. Feels like when we bought Ossie and ricky.. You can see Willian fitting in with the 2 other Brazilians already settled
 
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