Redknapp quote on Bale. "He's an amazing player. He's got everything, there's not a weakness in his make-up. GARETH BALE AT TOTTENHAM Continue reading the main story 2011-12: 18 games (8 goals) 2010-11: 41 games (11 goals) 2009-10: 34 games (3 goals) 2008-09: 30 games (0 goals) 2007-08: 13 games (3 goals) "He can head the ball, he's as strong as an ox, he can run, dribble, and shoot, and most important of all - he's a smashing lad." Is Bale the best player Saints have produced?
No. He's still not a patch on Le Tiss or Micky Channon. Plus, the more I see Bale, the more of a diver, moaner and all round knobend he appears to be. Great player, but certainly the London lifestyle has changed him as a person on the evidence of his gurning and odd goal celebrations. Its one thing being impressive against Norwich with one of the worse defences in the league and being impressive against Man Utd or Man City etc.
Bale is a great player but a great deal of his game is based on strength and and the fact that he is a great athlete.He is not short on skill but compared to Le Tiss nowhere near i'm afraid.Still think that when Chamberlain comes through he could be also amongst the best that have come through our system
Still boggles my mind that Wenger continues to bring on that tub of lard Ashavin ahead of Chamberlain.
I think Spurs have done a great job with him. He is of course no where near the best we have produced but certainly the best for a while. When he used to play LB for us I'd never have thought Spurs would end up deploying him as a roaming left (or right) midfielder
4/4..? OK, jokey pick at the title over [please check at least that before you post]. Back to Bale. Best ever..? No. In the top ten..? Yes. Bearing in mind that he's a candidate for being the best/most effective player, in the PL, that makes him pretty good already. I'm surprised someone has said that it took Spurs to get him to play in midfield. It was well known at Saints that he was capable of playing there. He just needed to learn a little more game craft before he did. What has happened at Spurs is that he has physically grown so much. He was still a fairly boyish lad at Saints, and then had another growth spurt. He has since added power to his abilities. It's the power which both He and Chamberlain have, in spades, which makes the major distinction between those two and Theo Walcott.
Most players don't fully bulk up until their early 20s. A combination of gym work and competitive match experience sees to that generally. It certainly helped though that Bale was very naturally athletic. Think Bale was always a winger, but Burley had a track record of playing midfielders in defence and as it happened, Bale wasn't bad as an attacking full back.
You can't really say to be honest, because with those who have subsequently left us, it also depends how they are treated/coached/trained etc post-Saints. Take Walcott as an obvious example. Six years ago next month he left us, six years! I've always wondered, and I still do, how he could have turned out had he not gone to Arsenal - because, for me, Arsenal and Wenger have near-ruined him. At the very least, they've messed him about - I mean come on, six years!!
You can't really compare him to Le Tiss, Channon or Shearer, because it's a different position, but he has to be the best wide player we've produced. He's got to be the best left-sided player in the world right now. He'd play for anyone.
6 years and a lot of people in the media are still talking about Walcott's potential. I won't disagree just yet as he's only 22 and I still think he could become a better player, but at Arsenal I think it's unlikely. They haven't done him too many favours. I wouldn't be against bringing him back here if we had the chance as he is a very good player, as we see in flashes, but short on confidence.
If the measure is how they developed afterwards, Channon is out of the frame - he was awful at City! Seriously, Channon terrified defences with his pace and control and won 45 caps for England. He is unsurpassed in my view. I always loved watching Shearer develop into a legendary player. I was lucky enough to meet him when he was at Blackburn. Quiet guy off the pitch, but a monster on it. Bale is awesome, but legendary status is bestowed a little later in the career!
