Gareth Bale – Going or Staying?

A 5th placed finish means that its Europa League football once again for Tottenham Hotspur next season. The question now on almost all minds is simple. Will Gareth Bale be a Spurs player next season?
The 23 year old Welshman has been the North London clubs shining star this season picking up 3 Individual Player of the Year awards and scoring 21 of Spurs 66 league goals this season. Now regarded as one of the best players in the world, he has drawn comparisons with other greats in recent months and speculation about a summer move has been rife even before the last game of the season yesterday afternoon. Now that the 2012/2013 campaign has come to a close, speculation about where the midfielder will be playing next season increases.
The hurt was clear for all to see at White Hart Lane yesterday afternoon as despite a 1-0 win over Sunderland, it wasn’t enough to secure a top 4 finish as Arsenal picked up a 1-0 away victory at Newcastle United and secured the final spot for themselves by just a single point. To call the season a failure could be considered harsh given the kind of results they’ve achieved throughout the campaign such as wins over Manchester United, Arsenal and Manchester City just to name a few. There have also been some top performances from players like Bale and Jan Vertonghen which will have been a joy to behold for many supporters. Regarding the 5th place final standing, the main word that seems to be getting passed around at the moment is “Disappointment.”
Andre Villas-Boas admitted that it was a pity his side missed out on achieving their target despite coming so close, but that they would have to improve over the summer months to ensure that they don’t miss out again. He then said that he felt the club had to keep Gareth Bale if they were going to stand any chance of improving also. But after making it public knowledge at the PFA Awards ceremony that he wanted to be playing in the Champions League, is it perhaps too much of an ask to keep Bale in the white shirt of Tottenham?
While there would be many potential suitors for the player, if previous Spurs business strategy is anything to go by, the chances of him appearing for any other club in England could be slim to none. Remembering back to the last two summers, Chairman Daniel Levy refused to sell Luka Modric to Chelsea regardless of how much they were prepared to offer before eventually the Croatian midfielder signed for Real Madrid last August. If a foreign club comes in for Bale with a decent enough transfer bid then it could well be very hard for Levy not to turn the offer down knowing that if he did he is potentially upsetting his clubs best player by not allowing him the chance to compete with Europe’s elite.
There have been rumours and reports surfacing today that Bale has agreed a new contract with Spurs, but no confirmation as of yet. If this does turn out to be true then it may well put transfer speculation to bed at least for another season. It would also be a massive lift to his teammates if true and would hopefully be enough to encourage them to also improve and help the club go one step further next season. But until any news regarding Bale’s future is made public knowledge by White Hart Lane officials, the talk seems ever likely to continue for the foreseeable future.
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