Gareth Bale

[Mr. Voldemort]

I'm developing the terrible thought that Levy thinks he can't win trophies, so he's buying trophy items instead - new stadium, Mourinho, Bale.

Maybe the wine's wearing off a bit.

Have another bottle.

 

[Cravenspurs]

Don’t talk to me about SC. Permanently banned twice!

I was banned for asking Hercules a clarifying question. Thank god though. Now I just have to deal with racist Americans in the American politics thread.

 

[Luxy208]

A & C and his Hitler youth.

 

[sammyspurs]

Both great goals but I go with Bale. He had far less time to see it and really digs it out .... almost like there’s no way it should be possible . Plus it finds a top corner
Sinclairs is fantastic technique but he has longer to see it and set himself

just my take

Sounds like you think you could do better than Sinclair. Tenner?

 

[RealCoolYid]

Sounds like you think you could do better than Sinclair. Tenner?

Well you know sammy it’s hard to say ..... depends on who’s delivery the cross

for example if it’s Aurier...... all bets are off ...keep ya money !

 

[SoCalSpurs]

Now I just have to deal with racist Americans in the American politics thread.

 

[SpurFromOz]

#Colonel

 

[SoCalSpurs]

#Colonel

He’s English. There’s no way shape or form the Yanks are claiming that prick.

 

[ChrissyWaddleShares]

It's strange.

Bale coming back is something only Tottenham fans can really understand. He marked us going from a small club to a big club, and unless you watched his every week ...it really was like watching a 100m sprinter playing football against a bunch of overweight toddlers.

I also just love the romance of the whole thing. It's nostalgic and get's us all thinking about how our own lives have changed in the last 7 years. Football can be a good reference for that kind of shit.

You also have to remember that Spurs (since the late 80s) has been about the underdog - the ‘Spursy’ - that we can go from world-beaters one week, to losing to minnows the next. Bale is that in a single player: look at his decline under Zidane - in his potential redemption with us, we see our club’s, too (like Jose to a lesser extent).
I don’t think the human level of this can be underestimated, either: it’s about rehabilitation, overcoming the odds. That’s why we loved Poch even more as he descended the steps to losing the plot - that vulnerability, but somehow still winning. Bale’s decline shows us his humanity, and the narrative demands that he regains his powers. It’s only right that it’s at NWHL.

 

[Smogz]

I see the world class winger that Bale is (was), could all the injuries have taken a toll. It's he as fast as he was? Could it be that he'll hold up better in another position. As 10 behind Kane, with a licence to attack.

What the fuck. Who am I kidding. Just play the world class player in his position for fucks sake.

 

[paddy spur]

 

[icymanipulator]

So glad he's back.

 

[Nutter-Naylor]

 

[Airfixx]

He’s English. There’s no way shape or form the Yanks are claiming that prick.

NO WAYYYYYYYY...... We got tonnes of assholes, but he's 100% yankie.

 

[Bill Madrid]

OK. He's a Welsh cunt who can't speak Spanish to save his life.

He does speak Spanish to some degree, I heard him three years ago or so, I'd say it was low intermediate - a little better than "survival level" where you can order a meal and ask for and understand simple directions but not quite at a level where he could discuss any subject of a certain complexity. His accent was pretty awful but he was certainly understandable.

I imagine his level has improved a bit in the interim. I'd expect his passive level (understanding spoken and written stuff) to be pretty decent. His problem (and actually the biggest problem for many Spaniards learning English and the bane of a teacher's life here) is his fear of speaking, thinking that people will take the piss when he makes a mistake. I'd say in his case it's a result of his acute shyness which is evident even when he speaks English - the nervous laughter, the constant "yeahs" (they're called "little crutches" in Spanish, the little things we all say sometimes and some say all the time to give ourselves a moment, to cover up our nervousness, like "know what I mean?", "right?" and so on).

Incidentally, Beckham was the same, spoke fairly OK but never to the media. He's someone who comes across a lot more confidently than Bale in English, although I seem to remember him being much shyer before he became a superstar.

So you're wrong, he certainly could mount some sort of defence to save his life and a fairly reasonable one too if the chips were down. Certainly a damn sight better than most English people could do in a foreign language

 

[Olaf]

 

[mummy]

He does speak Spanish to some degree, I heard him three years ago or so, I'd say it was low intermediate - a little better than "survival level" where you can order a meal and ask for and understand simple directions but not quite at a level where he could discuss any subject of a certain complexity. His accent was pretty awful but he was certainly understandable.

I imagine his level has improved a bit in the interim. I'd expect his passive level (understanding spoken and written stuff) to be pretty decent. His problem (and actually the biggest problem for many Spaniards learning English and the bane of a teacher's life here) is his fear of speaking, thinking that people will take the piss when he makes a mistake. I'd say in his case it's a result of his acute shyness which is evident even when he speaks English - the nervous laughter, the constant "yeahs" (they're called "little crutches" in Spanish, the little things we all say sometimes and others say all the time to give ourselves a moment, to cover up our nervousness, like "know what I mean?", "right?" and so on).

Incidentally, Beckham was the same, spoke fairly OK but never to the media. He's someone who comes across a lot more confidently than Bale in English, although I seem to remember him being much shyer before he became a superstar.

So you're wrong, he certainly could mount some sort of defence to save his life and a fairly reasonable one too if the chips were down. Certainly a damn sight better than most English people could do in a foreign language

Yes, I knew I was wrong when I posted it.

If I only posted stuff I knew to be right I'd never post anything.


Excellent analysis, by the way.

 

[Pippins]

I love listening to him talking in a normal non interview conversation. He sounds uncomfortable and nervous when answering questions.

 

[Deckard]

He does speak Spanish to some degree, I heard him three years ago or so, I'd say it was low intermediate - a little better than "survival level" where you can order a meal and ask for and understand simple directions but not quite at a level where he could discuss any subject of a certain complexity. His accent was pretty awful but he was certainly understandable.

I imagine his level has improved a bit in the interim. I'd expect his passive level (understanding spoken and written stuff) to be pretty decent. His problem (and actually the biggest problem for many Spaniards learning English and the bane of a teacher's life here) is his fear of speaking, thinking that people will take the piss when he makes a mistake. I'd say in his case it's a result of his acute shyness which is evident even when he speaks English - the nervous laughter, the constant "yeahs" (they're called "little crutches" in Spanish, the little things we all say sometimes and others say all the time to give ourselves a moment, to cover up our nervousness, like "know what I mean?", "right?" and so on).

Incidentally, Beckham was the same, spoke fairly OK but never to the media. He's someone who comes across a lot more confidently than Bale in English, although I seem to remember him being much shyer before he became a superstar.

So you're wrong, he certainly could mount some sort of defence to save his life and a fairly reasonable one too if the chips were down. Certainly a damn sight better than most English people could do in a foreign language

My first language is Italian, and I have always thought that it must be very difficult for a British guy to learn any of the Latin derived languages, especially for a footballer, as they can survive without having to learn a language at a high level

 

[Spanish Spur]

My first language is Italian, and I have always thought that it must be very difficult for a British guy to learn any of the Latin derived languages, especially for a footballer, as they can survive without having to learn a language at a high level

yeah, I think it's harder for English speakers too. I didn't speak proper Spanish until I was 11 or so. A good 5 years after moving here.