Gareth Bale: Pace, Power and the Big Finals

Tottenham did not sign the finished forward

Tottenham’s signing from Southampton in 2007 was a 17-year-old Gareth Bale. Ledley King expected a fine left-back, perhaps a wing-back. What he was watching by the end of that first Spurs spell was a player capable of playing anywhere across the forward line. Bale’s development had brought a substantial change of job.

The pace was there early. As Bale moved forward, his carries ended closer to goal and he began finishing attacks regularly with his left foot. Tottenham’s 2013 departure announcement puts that first spell at 55 goals in 203 appearances. Madrid bought a player with six years of development behind him.

Finding a place on Madrid’s right

Bale shared the front line at Real Madrid with Cristiano Ronaldo and Karim Benzema. From the right, he could come in onto his left foot while Ronaldo threatened on the other side. He could also run past the defence or arrive at the far post. When a passing move ended with a cross, his size and heading gave Madrid another way to finish it.

We include him for the substantial spell on Madrid’s right. At Spurs the left had mattered, and with Wales he was often needed nearer the middle. He could switch sides within a game as well. His career cannot be fitted into a single position.

Three finals that explain the appeal

The sprint past Marc Bartra in the 2014 Copa del Rey final took Bale down the left to score the winner against Barcelona. Later that spring, he headed Madrid ahead in extra time against Atlético in the Champions League final. One finish came from acceleration in open space. The other needed him to arrive where he could put away a loose ball.

He scored twice against Liverpool in the 2018 final, the overhead kick followed by another goal. Madrid credits him with 106 goals in 258 appearances and five Champions League titles. He did very different amounts of work in those winning campaigns; to gauge his individual influence, we learn more from his best finals than from the total of medals.

Wales asked him to carry more

For Wales, Bale took on broader responsibilities than his place in Madrid’s front three demanded. The FAW’s retirement review gives his completed record as 111 appearances and 41 goals. Wales qualified for two European Championships and the 2022 World Cup during that career.

Wales reached the semi-finals of EURO 2016 with Bale having scored in each group match. They could build around him, whereas Madrid, with several leading forwards in the same attack, did not need to. That difference in the share of work he carried helps explain the affection for his national-team career.

Ninth among the right wingers

Exceptional work for Wales, years at an elite club and a high attacking peak put Bale ninth in our best right wingers of all time ranking. The finals count in that judgment, but a handful of famous goals cannot tell us about every season.

Arjen Robben was another left-footed threat starting on the right. Bale brought greater aerial presence and experience of more positions, although injuries and uneven availability weaken his claim for consistency. In his best form he could seriously threaten a defence despite relatively little time on the ball, running beyond the defenders to finish the move.