Chris Sutton has claimed that while Gareth Bale has been a world-class player in the past, the Tottenham star has not done enough this season to warrant the tag at present.
Bale endured a difficult start to the season, finding opportunities hard to come by and failing to demonstrate his quality when chances did come his way.
However, the Welshman now seems to have turned a corner and is showing glimpses of the player he was at his pomp.
The 31-year-old bagged yet another brace in Tottenham’s 4-1 win over Crystal Palace on Sunday, making it six goals from his last six appearances for the North Londoners.
Jose Mourinho admitted that having the winger back playing at the level he currently is making a big difference to the Spurs side.
However, Sutton played down the quality of Bale’s display on Sunday, insisting that the on-loan Real Madrid star simply scored two tap-ins before being taken off.
Speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live Sport’s 606 show, the former Blackburn striker said: “Oh, wow, Gareth Bale scoring from three yards against Crystal Palace and then getting subbed.
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“I mean that was hardly world-class.
“Are we going to have this petty argument every week? He has been world-class in the past but is he and has he done enough this season? I don’t think so.
“But can he get Spurs a Champions League place?”
Spurs Web Opinion
I have always found the ‘world-class’ tag to be a very arbitrary one, with many people having their own definition of what the word means. However, one cannot deny that Bale has one of the best left-foots in the game.
It was not just the goals that the Welshman scored against Palace which stood out but his build-up play and the way he was pinging pin-point cross-field balls was a joy to watch.
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