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A little over a decade ago, a young Welsh boy made his debut for Championship side; Southampton. The left-back made an immediate impact in the footballing world, drawing the attention of some of several clubs in the English totop flightIn the summer of 2007, Gareth Bale signed for Tottenham Hotspur.
The Welsh International went on to score 55 goals in 203 appearances for the London club. In his 6 years at Spurs, Bale produced some mind-blowing performances, beating defenders for pace and scoring some absolute screamers. Bale even won the 'PFA Best Player Award' and the 'Fans Best Player Award' for his astonishing display in the 2012-13 Premier League season.
In 2013, Bale moved to the Spanish capital, for what was then a World Record fee. Since then, the Welshman has won 4 Champions League titles and a La Liga title with Los Blancos.
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In his illustrious career so far, Bale has produced some moments of magic that have left the planet astonished. Here are 5 of his greatest performances on a football pitch.
#5 England vs Wales (Euro 2016)
After almost 58 years, Wales qualified for their first major International tournament. The Real Madrid winger scored 7 goals in the qualifying round, single-handedly taking Wales to France.
The debutants at the Euro 2016 were up against some of the finest sides in the World. Chris Coleman's men were the tournament underdogs. The continent however was in for a shock, as Wales topped their group ahead of England, Russia, and Slovakia. Producing some breathtaking performances, the Welsh played like they were masters of the beautiful game, and became a force to be reckoned with in the competition.
The Real Madrid winger opened the scoring at the Euros, with a sensational free-kick and led his side to a 2-1 victory over Slovakia. Bale's opener was the first goal in a major competition for Wales since a goal against Hungary in the 1958 World Cup.
His best performance however was against England, in what the media were calling the 'English Derby'. The Welsh needed their star man to rise up, and he didn't disappoint. Scoring from a dead ball 40 yards out, Bale produced a moment of class that gave Coleman's side an early lead.
His pace and power throughout the game gave England a tough time, as they struggled to get hold of the number 11. The fixture ended 2-1 thanks to goals from Jamie Vardy and a stoppage-time winner from Raheem Sterling, but Bale's performance was more than sensational. His solo runs sent the English defense into a fit and will not be forgotten soon.
Wales went on to beat Belgium in the Quarterfinals, thanks to a fantastic display by Coleman's side. They lost to eventual winners Portugal in the semifinal. Bale's performance at the Euro 2016 earned him a 3rd place spot ahead of the likes of Lionel Messi and Neymar in the UEFA Best Player list.
#4 La Decima
It had been 12 years since a Zinedine Zidane volley gave Los Blancos their 9th European title. The Spanish Giants had won 3 trophies in 5 years back then. However, they had no idea that they would have to wait for more than a decade to play their next CL final.
Back in 2014, Lisbon was ready for the biggest game of the season. For the first time, 2 teams from the same city would face each other in a European Final. Gareth Bale was all set for what would be one of the greatest Madrid Derbies of all time. The game began in the worst way possible for Les Merengues. A Casillas error gave Los Rojiblancos an early lead in Lisbon. Los Blancos suffered for the rest of the 90, as they struggled to find the back of the net. Just when La Decima seemed to have eluded Carlo Ancelloti's men, Sergio Ramos headed home a 93rd-minute equalizer, forcing the game into extra time.
A team that was moments away from being European Champions for the first time suddenly had to do it all over again. Simeone's men just couldn't find the inspiration and extra time saw Real absolutely rout their opposition, wining the game 4-1 on the night. In the second half of extra time, Angel Di Maria made a fabulous run and took a beautiful shot on goal. The shot was kept out by Courtois but landed perfectly for Gareth Bale who headed home the winner. Bale might not have been Real's savior but he sure was the hero who sent Real Madrid into the lead. Goals from Cristiano Ronaldo and Marcelo finished the game off, and Real finally won the prestigious La Decima.
The $100Million signing who was brought to the Bernabeu to help Los Blancos make La Decima a reality didn't disappoint. The Welshman had lived up to his reputation and his winner in the Champions League final was only a precedent for what lay ahead.
#3 Spurs vs West Ham
Spurs traveled to Upton Park in desperate need of 3 points to stay in contention for a Champions League spot. Facing tricky opposition, Tottenham knew they would have to be at their best to beat the Hammers.
13 minutes into the game, Bale skipped over the West Ham defense and found the bottom left corner from the edge of the box. Tottenham now had a crucial lead, but one that would only last 11 minutes. West Ham won a penalty and Andy Caroll netted in from the spot to give the Hammers the equalizer.
Bale and Spurs would now have to do it all over again. With only the last half hour remaining, West Ham managed to make it 2, turning the game into Spurs' biggest nightmare. Spurs would now have to score 2 goals in the last phase of the game if they wanted to play in Europe next season.
With 15 minutes to go, Spurs won a free kick. Bale crossed the ball in beautifully and Gylfi Sigurdsson managed to find the back of the net. Tottenham had equalized, but their objective was far from achieved. With only a minute left on the clock, Spurs needed a miracle. Bale found himself in space, about 35 yards from goal, and let fly an absolute stunner that found the top corner. Upton Park turned inside out with fury. Gareth Bale had done the impossible.
Scoring a brace and assisting one, The Welsh International showed the world why he was an absolute game-changer, and why he could rise to the occasion when he had to. His breathtaking, audacious strike from 35 yards out was a moment of absolute magic. It is goals like these, and performances like this that make football the beautiful game that it is.
#2 Real vs Barcelona (Copa Del Rey Final)
Los Blancos' 2012-13 season didn't finish in the best way possible. Joe Mourinho's side finished off as League Champions, but they crashed out of the other two competitions. Being knocked out of the Champions League in the semi-final stage for the 4th consecutive time, La Decima seemed to have eluded Real once again.
A Copa Del Rey final meant that Los Merengues could finish off their season with a double, but everything seemed to be going wrong for Mourinho's side. Losing to their Crosstown rivals, Real failed to bring home the cup and finished the season on a low. Los Blancos had won the oldest football competition in Spain only 18 times and were outclassed by Barcelona's 28 in the competition. Cristiano Ronaldo had scored the winner in Mestalla in 2011 against Barcelona to make it 18 for 'The Whites' but the Real Madrid ace was sidelined due to injury for the final in 2014.
The Bernabeu now looked to their most expensive Galactico to lead them to a crucial El Clasico win. The Mestalla was once again set for the biggest domestic match of the season. Angel Di Maria opened the scoring thanks to a breathtaking counter-attacking display by Los Merengues and moved Real a step closer to the victory. The Catalans, however, had something different in mind, as a beautiful header from Marc Bartra gave Barcelona the much-needed equalizer and put La Blaugrana back in the game.
In the final moments of the match, however, the Welsh forward stole the show as he let fly a run that would go down in history as one of the greatest El Clasico goals of all time. The world's most expensive player proved his worth as he beat Marc Batra for pace with an excellent run on goal. Moving with the ball at his feet, taking the longer outer route, Gareth made the run of his life. His speed was no match for Batra who struggled to catch up with the Welsh International. Heading towards the goal, Bale slotted home from a tight angle to give Les Merengues the ultimate winner.
Undoubtedly the goal of his career, Bale proved to be the hero Real needed and gave Los Blancos their 19th Copa Del Rey title.
#1 Milan vs Spurs
In October of 2010, Spurs traveled to the San Siro to face the newly crowned European Champions. The side was a force to be reckoned with and fielded some of the finest players of the generation. In less than a minute, Inter were off the mark thanks to a brilliant goal from Javier Zanetti. The Inter captain found himself at the end of a beautiful attacking move and netted the ball in from 12 yards out.
Inter had once again turned the San Siro into hell and Spurs could do nothing about it. A few moments later, Wesley Sneijder bisected the right flank and sent Jonathan Bibiany sprinting towards goal. The Winger was then taken out by a desperate challenge by Heurelho Gomes and the Spurs first choice keeper was sent off for an early shower.
A delayed run up from Samuel Eto'o and a fantastic penalty meant that Spurs were now 2-0 down and reduced to 10 men. 13 minutes into the first half, Dejan Stankovic made it 3 with a brilliant fake and classy finish from the edge of the box. Inter had turned the fixture into a party and Spurs seemed clearly outclassed in Milan. To add insult to injury, Eto'o poked in his second, thanks to a lovely through ball from a young Coutinho and made it 4 on the night.
The Tottenham squad was perhaps longing for the final whistle, but a 21-year-old Bale had something else in mind. This was his chance to prove his mettel. He was up against perhaps the best defense in the continent and this was his opportunity to show the planet how good he was. The young Welshman began a run from his own half that saw him send the legendary Maicon for a spin and drive the Italians' defenders into a fit. Bale ran all the way into the box and managed to find the net from a fine angle beating Julio Cesar for the first time on the night.
The winger wasn't done yet. In fact, he wasn't even close. A pass down the flank gave Bale the opportunity to once again beat the legendary Zanetti for pace and let fly a shot that hit the inside of the side netting. It was Inter who couldn't wait for the whistle now, as Bale made it 2 for Tottenham with only stoppage time to go. A fantastic run from Aaron Lennon set Bale up for his third as he swung his left foot and found the left bottom corner. The former Southampton boy had just scored a hat trick against the best defense and perhaps the best team on the planet.
The game finished 4-3, with Inter bagging the 3 points, but what Bale had done to Inter will go down in history as one of the greatest individual performances by a player on a football pitch. His pace, passion, and fearlessness had paid off. Bale had turned the San Siro into his playground and ripped apart a legendary defense, taking the mic out of the best in the business.
