Gareth Bale, the fourth most expensive footballer of all time, first came to prominence as a
quick, surprisingly creative left-back in a season that saw Southampton reach the
Championship play-offs but fall to Derby on penalties.
Bale was named the BBC Wales Young Sports Personality of the Year that season,
having scored five goals, and in May 2007, he was
signed by Spurs for a final fee of £7 million.
Bale struggled with injuries and played 24 games
for Spurs without winning a match, then a league record.
Spurs, under Harry Redknapp, initially used Bale as a left back.
In 2009/10, though, he got has chance to play as a left midfielder in
a 4-4-1-1, a position Ryan Giggs had predicted he
would eventually make his own.
Redknapp played Bale as an orthodox left midfielder going into the 2010/11.
His strongest performances at that time came when he bombed
up and down the left-hand side of the pitch, cutting inside only at the last moment.
His superb performances against Inter Milan, when he left Maicon, a world class right-back,
looking decidedly average, were touch-line hugging in the extreme.
With Luka Modric pulling the strings from deep in the midfield, and
Rafael van der Vaart playing in the hole, Bale could stay wide and use his pace to find
space to cross or tuck inside his opposition right
back to find shooting opportunities.
On the other flank, Spurs used Aaron Lennon in the same way – their 4-4-1-1 had quick
wingers, space for van der Vaart in the hole, and a dynamic midfield axis.
But there were issues with this: Bale (and Lennon) could
be marked out of games if the opposition doubled up on them, but if the Welshman drifted centrally
away from marking, the centre could become crowded as van der Vaart was somewhat
lethargic and disinclined to create space for Bale.
Redknapp was replaced by Andre Villas-Boas for the 2012/13 season and Spurs lost Modric
to Real Madrid.
Villas Boas compensated by shifting to a 4-2-3-1, with a dynamic double axis
in midfield of Sandro and Moussa Dembele, who could also the carry the ball forwards,
Clint Dempsey or Gylfi Sigurdsson playing in the
ten role, both more mobile and hard-working than van der Vaart.
Bale, and indeed Lennon, were still key to the Spurs’ early style under AVB, though
– pace out wide, whipped balls in to Jermain Defoe
or the aerial threat of Dempsey arriving late, and Bale especially welcome to drift inside
and create more himself, with Dempsey able to
drop off or push up and Sandro and Dembele far more capable of covering across if
required.
But, increasingly, Bale found he could dictate the game from central positions and so AVB
moved him to the ten role and then, eventually, when opposition players tried to force him
back out wide to nullify his scoring threat, into an inverted right winger – a left footed
player on the right of a 4-3-3.
Indeed, some of Bale’s matches towards the end of his time at Spurs saw him play all
three roles in the same game: left winger in a 4-2-3-1,
number ten in a 4-2-3-1, or an inverted winger on the right of a 4-3-3.
Bale’s intelligence, combined with AVB’s desire to switch
tactics depending on opponent, or even in-game, meant the Welshman could do this –
flexible, adaptable, and brilliant wherever he played.
Moving to Real Madrid for a then world record fee, Bale continued to improve and play in
a variety of roles.
Under a succession of coaches, Bale has shown that the same sort of
flexibility that he demonstrated at Spurs can work in the more technical, slightly slower
Spanish top league.
Bale has continued to score at an impressive rate, hitting heights in goals
and assists per 90 that he failed to reach at Spurs.
Bale’s key passes per 90 has also generally been more impressive for Real – the step
up in quality was not too much for the Welshman who is, let’s not forget, still only 28.
This season, Bale has played as a striker in a 4-3-1-2 and on the right-hand side of
a 4-3-3, scoring two goals and one assist in La Liga
and one goal and two assists in the Champions League.
[PIC 10 and 11]​ In a crowded squad for attacking talent, Bale
still carves out a role for himself.
Strong, quick, intelligent, and tactically flexible, Bale
has come a long way from the over-lapping left-back
who made a debut as a 16-year-old on the south coast.