da heads bet：
da doce： Once upon a time Gareth Bale and Theo Walcott were trainees at Southampton. This weekend Bale completed negotiations for a lucrative contract on the back of consecutive scoring appearances against none other than Arsenal and Chelsea. Conversely Walcott’s transient flashes of potential are fading in memory faster than the time it takes him to clock 100metres. The unorthodox fairy tale that has unfurled since their days at Southampton has, at various moments, resembled a comedy and a tragedy.
Bale’s transformation from the superstitiously ill-fated Premier League loser to the latest beneficiary of White Hart Lane’s system of meritocracy is indicative of football’s fickle nature. Twenty four league games, spanning two seasons, without victory left many wondering if the talented young Welshman had stagnated in his progress and whether the early hype attributed to his name was only part of the standard media sensationalism. Every Tottenham fan will vouch that over the past six weeks Bale’s performances have exhibited his qualities: desire, directness, penetrating pace and remarkable stamina. These are the same qualities he possessed when signing for the club but it appeared circumstance, timing and fate all worked in unison to haunt him for the two dozen senior appearances without a win in the white jersey. The memory of his much publicised losing streak all but evaporated as he slotted home the decisive second goal in the north London derby nearly a fortnight ago. Add to that the harassment he dished out to Paulo Ferreira and Chelsea in the following match and the twenty-year-old has completed a commendable turnaround in his still fledgling professional career.
In stark comparison Theo Walcott has found form cannot exist without fitness. His Arsenal career has suffered numerous false starts with many quick to scorn his latest offerings to Arsene Wenger’s team. The fact that some quarters are writing Walcott off is as laughable as it is myopic. The truth is that Walcott, more so than any other emerging talent, has been the victim of circumstance and misfortune. He became a figure of ridicule and resentment when England crashed out of the last World Cup yet this was through no fault of his own. Despite this premature hyper exposure there have been peaks in his career: his three-goal-haul away at Croatia in September 2008 perhaps the most memorable. I further believe that his output is unfairly analysed for Arsenal as it comes at a time where patience is at a premium for the club. Walcott himself inadvertently embodies every facet of critique directed at Wenger’s project: the investment in youth that has, thus far, yielded zero trophies.
If this isn’t enough to suggest that the zeitgeist does not favour Walcott we should consider his contributions at crucial moments for his club. The first was in February 2008, away to Birmingham; Arsenal sat at the top of the table and Walcott netted an assured brace. The match now lives in infamy as Eduardo suffered a horrifying double leg break, Arsenal conceded a late penalty, and Gallas did his Jack Nicholson impression from One Flew thus beginning their dismal run-in to the league. Less than two months later in the quarter finals of the Champions League, away at Liverpool, Arsenal were trailing 3-2 on aggregate and Walcott sparkled into life from the half way line at a frightening pace to cross for Adebayor, almost sealing a place in the last four. Like at Birmingham, Arsenal conceded a contentious late penalty and lost the tie. The headlines were so very close and his contribution telling but, again, events conspired against him and the true value of those moments remains underappreciated.
Gareth Bale’s recent fine form inevitably leads to comparisons with the similar aged The Walcott and with both having suffered their fair share of ridicule at very young ages this double narrative has a common resonance. But Bale’s fine form does not diminish the lengths he still has to go before he can be considered an accomplished defender (the defeat at Old Trafford highlights this). Harry Redknapp’s difficulty will probably lie in where to deploy the left footer; defence or midfield? I do not doubt that time is on Bale’s side and he has the raw qualities to flourish into a very good player but if the last six weeks has taught us anything, it is that football is fickle. Walcott’s raw ability, like Bale’s, is astonishing – he is a player whose pace is genuinely obscene. This fact alone is not enough to guarantee success however; he must remain fit and have a sustained run in the team (much like the opportunity Bale has engineered for himself). But when judged fairly he has demonstrated not only the ability to deliver but to deliver at crucial moments. The value of these moments has definitely been undermined because, as I have argued, it is not completely the fault of the individual.
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