22 June 2023 , 16:00
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When a once-in-a-generation talent comes along, the last thing anyone wants to consider is what happens after they are gone.
It is not as though Wales had not had great players before. From John Charles and John Toshack to Ian Rush and Ryan Giggs, the principality had known memorable times.
But in Gareth Bale, they had more than that.
In Gareth Bale, they had a wonderkid.
In Gareth Bale, they had a game-changer.
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In Gareth Bale, they had a Galactico.
And eventually, in Gareth Bale, they had a player who could raise a Welsh army to march on a World Cup for the first time in 64 years.
The past few days have highlighted starkly how difficult Wales are finding life without Bale. Beaten shockingly at home by Armenia last Friday, they then lost to group favourites Turkey to make their chances of a third consecutive Euro finals a long shot.
Bale’s 40 goals in 111 international appearances helped propel Wales from 117th in the world to 10th in the FIFA rankings – above England – while he was in his prime.
Close pal and Wales keeper Wayne Hennessey knows the Euro 2016 semi-finalists never would have hit the heights without their talisman.
Gareth Bale scored 40 goals in 111 games for Wales (S4C)Hennessey said: “You take his goals away, his assists, his leadership. You take him away, I don’t think we get much success without Gareth.
“Throughout my whole career I’ve never had to face a free-kick against Gareth. I feel sorry for keepers that had to. You’d see him practise free-kicks in training and they’d all go in. What he could do with a ball was frightening.”
Long-time team-mate, Joe Allen, combined with Bale on countless occasions and had a first-class view up close of the magic, which made it all the more difficult when he realised that at just 33, the end was nigh for Bale, who waited until a few weeks after the World Cup to announce his retirement.
Gareth Bale helped Wales reach the 2022 World Cup (S4C)“It was incredible to see,” said Allen. “He stood out, a higher standard than anyone else on the pitch. It was a bit of a shock when the news came through. It was an elephant in the room at the World Cup. I’m sure it was something everyone had started to think about. When was the best time, the right to do it. It wasn’t something we discussed.”
Hennessey and Allen were speaking in a tribute show for Welsh language TV station S4C which will be broadcast on Sunday and reflects on Bale’s remarkable career. It charts his progress from an aspiring Southampton trainee to Tottenham youngster in 2007 before going on to Real Madrid.
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Former Spurs boss Harry Redknapp recalled his early troubled London days. Redknapp said: “He had been on the losing team for a ridiculous number of games. Whenever he had played, the team hadn’t won.
“People said he can’t play, he has never been on a winning team. Even Alex Ferguson said to me: ‘I wouldn’t play him, Harry’. He is a superstitious man, Alex, he said we were taking a chance with him.”
Gareth Bale scored a hat-trick against Inter Milan in October 2010 (Clive Rose/Getty Images)But those doubts were ended emphatically by a stunning hat-trick in 2010 at reigning Champions League holders Inter Milan. Spurs lost the game 4-3 after conceding early and having keeper Heurelho Gomes sent off to trail 4-0 at the break. But Bale’s second-half destruction of Brazilian right-back Maicon signalled the world to sit up and take notice of the Welsh prodigy.
Redknapp said: “I thought we could get beat eight or nine but we went out second half and Gareth started to run them ragged. They had no answer to him. There wasn’t a right-back around who could stop him. He showed the world what he could do. It was onwards and upwards. Taxi for Maicon.”
Taxi for Maicon but the start of first-class travel for Bale, who went on to conquer the world.
*Gareth Bale: Byw’r Freuddwyd, Gareth Bale: Living the Dream will be shown on S4C, Sunday, 9pm.