It all seems a like a hazy, distant dream now.
It was only three months ago, where he stood, triumphant, refreshed and relieved to come back to the club where he first made his name. He returned as a conquering hero, with all his fans reliving all the glorious pictures of the past, attempting to recapture even a sliver of the warm feelings he made them feel in those days of yore.
Gareth Bale had returned to Spurs a four time European Cup champion, owner of some of the most spectacular goals in European Cup history, and a bonafide global superstar of first order. With his return, immediately, Spurs’ attack became the envy of world football. Surely, adding Bale to a lineup featuring Harry Kane, Son Heung-min, Lucas Moura, Steven Bergwijn, Dele Alli, Eric Lamela, Giovani Lo Celso and Tanguy Ndombele, gave manager Jose Mourinho a wealth of options that his predecessor, Mauricio Pochettino, never had the luxury of even dreaming of.
Yet, nearly three months since Bale returned to Spurs, the Welshman has failed to make any tangible impact on the club, and his merely average performances during this span are starting to create some anxiety over what Spurs actually have underneath the hood.
The mounting stress results from a dreadful week for Spurs, in which they won only one point in three Premier League matches; drawing Crystal Palace 1-1, losing at Liverpool and falling at home to Leicester (2-0). The sequence of bad results saw Spurs plummet from first in the table, to sixth, underlining just how competitive and tight the margins in the Premier League are this season.
Much of Spurs’ early success came from the otherworldly, sheer brilliance of Kane and Son, who combined exceptionally well to take Spurs to the top.
However, over the past week, although the two have scored (Kane against Palace and Son against Liverpool), there has been a slight lack of synchronization and sharpness from the pair. Part of that can be explained by opponents recognizing the dependence of Mourinho on his counter-attack, prompting them to neutralize the transition from the back to the midfield, nullifying opportunities for Kane to drop deep, and distribute for Son. This was evidenced in all three of the matches this past week, most recently with the dodged and determined efforts of Wilfred Ndidi and Youri Tielemans to conquer the midfield battle for Leicester.
Yet, in the few goal scoring opportunities that Spurs have managed over the past week, both Kane and Son have more often than not flubbed their chances, and with it, altering the narrative that follows. Against Liverpool, Kane mishit a header from a perfectly placed corner, straight into the ground, rather than at goal. Similarly, against Leicester, moments prior to Serge Aurier’s foul on Wesley Fofana which resulted in a Leicester penalty (and a 1-0 lead), Kane hit a pitch perfect Son corner with his head once again, but this time, well over the Leicester goal. Kane is credited for being one of the most clinical finishers in Europe, but his finishing was left wanting this past week.
Similarly, against Leicester in the first half, Son had a series of opportunities, where he chose to play a cross or head for an opponent, rather than take the prime opportunity for himself, squandering some of the rare dangerous opportunities that Spurs were able create.
Had any of these chances been taken (as they were in earlier matches this season), the story would be different. Yet, when Kane and Son are slightly off, based on Mourinho’s wealth of attacking options, it would be reasonable for others to occasionally take the burden off the sensational duo.
Much of that expectation should fall on Gareth Bale, who even with Spurs covering approximately 40% of his salary, is still the Premier League’s highest weekly earner. Sadly, Bale’s time at Spurs thus far has been unremarkable. He missed the first month of his return, recovering from a slight knee injury, and it feels like he has never fully settled since.
Since coming into the team against West Ham in mid October as a substitute (and watching the Hammers storm back from a 3-0 deficit, to equalize 3-3, in his 18 minutes on the pitch), Bale has only appeared in three Premier League matches (against Brighton, West Brom and Leicester). Although he did score a sitter against Brighton, his impact has been nominal. Bale has done most of his work in the Europa League group stages, where he featured in all six group matches, scoring once (against LASK in Linz), but never playing more than 82 minutes in a match.
Bale’s playing time at Real Madrid was cut short last season, as he gradually fell out of favour with manager Zinedine Zidane. As the club chased down another La Liga title, Bale featured in the team only twice since the return to play following the coronavirus lockdown, with his last action coming on 24 June. Given the long absence from playing top flight football, it was reasonable to expect that Bale would take some time to regain his fitness, especially with trying to acclimatize to a league that plays at a break neck pace like the Premier League.
Though harsh, it is completely fair to say that thus far, Gareth Bale looks merely a shell of the player that absolutely electrified the crowds at White Hart Lane many years ago. With the Wales national team, Bale often appeared like an all conquering, all action hero, involved in all phases of the game. His performance at Euro 2016 was scintillating, out of this world, as he guided his small country to the semi-finals of the competition.
Increasingly, in his return, Bale looks isolated on the right wing, seemingly out of sync with the rest of the midfield. In general, he looks far too languid, and bereft of the explosive thrust that marked his game during his first spell at Spurs. Perhaps at age 31, our expectations of him rampaging down the right flank were miscalculated. Perhaps, his history of muscle injuries have created a sense of hesitation and tentativeness, which has robbed him of his attacking flair.
Indeed, Mourinho has preferred Steven Bergwijn and occasionally Lucas Moura, to play in Premier League matches since Bale’s arrival. This season has brought a greater buy in of Mourinho’s tactics by the team. Over this time, it has become clear that much of his defensive philosophies require attacking players to track back and contribute to the defensive phase. This has been of paramount importance as Spurs now have attacking fullbacks on both flanks.
Over recent weeks, it has been Bergwijn who has demonstrated the requisite work rate and commitment to defensive duties, providing reinforcement for Serge Aurier at right back, while still having the pace to burst out on attack during the counter-attacking phase. Son Heung-min has also provided a similar service to help support Sergio Reguilon on the opposite side. Until now, Bale has yet to show Mourinho the level of fitness, pace and defensive acumen that he expects of his wingers, to earn a spot in his starting XI, week in and week out.
Against Leicester, after trailing 1-0 at the half, Mourinho brought on Bale to change the complexion of the game, substituting him on for Spurs’ creative spark, Tanguy Ndombele. It was quite unfortunate that mere minutes after that switch, the other creative spark, Giovani Lo Celso was injured with a muscle strain, and also had to be substituted (for Lucas Moura). Within such a short period of time, Spurs were without two of their most creative players, who could unlock a defense, and find space in contexts devoid of it.
The once feared trio of Son, Kane and Bale failed to make an impression, their play so disjointed, so static, so listless, and Leicester gradually took over the match. It truly was no contest at the end.
Given the wealth of attacking options that Mourinho has at his disposal, it is unfair to expect Kane and Son to provide all the offensive impulses for Spurs going forward. Yet as this season has progressed, it appears that without their contributions, the rest of the team has been unable to provide a similar lift.
Counting out Gareth Bale and Spurs now seems somewhat rash, and it does not appear that anybody is keen to partake in that, considering how tight the Premier League is at the moment. But for Bale to maintain the sheen of genius and upkeep the striking legacy that he left in his first spell, it would serve him well to find, if only a mere glimpse, of what made him special all those years ago.
If Bale can find that quality, and ultimately contribute towards a veritable title challenge for Spurs, perhaps that dream can last just a little bit longer.
Jaideep Kanungo
Jaikan Sport 