Should Wales Expect More from Gareth Bale at Euro 2016?

By
at Internationaled.org

Published: June 19, 2016

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In the final minute of Wales’ 2-1 loss to England on Thursday afternoon, Neil Taylor launched a high cross in to the penalty area, and there was Gareth Bale rising to meet the ball with a header in an effort to rescue an unlikely point. 

But of course, despite being directly in front of goal and making a good connection, Bale put his header wide of the post, and Wales were defeated.

The narrative around Bale is that he has performed well at Euro 2016 and lived up to his billing, but is that really the case?

Should Wales not expect more from their only world-class player in France?

Of course to question Bale is to question a Welsh deity, and even a smidgen of criticism is dismissed as nonsense, but it is hard to argue we have seen the best of him yet.



Yes, he has scored two of Wales’ three goals at the tournament, and both trademark free-kicks, but let us be clear, both should have been saved. 

The goals were embarrassments for the goalkeepers, rather than personal triumphs for Bale.

In Wales' opening game, Bale struck his free-kick well, and into the centre of the goal, but for some reason it still evaded the Slovakian goalkeeper Matus Kozacik to give Chris Coleman’s side the lead.

Once again in the game against England, Bale hit a powerful free-kick, but Joe Hart should never have been beaten from such a distance, around 35 yards, and yet he dived too late and had to watch the ball squeeze inside the post.

A relieved Hart acknowledged after the game (via the Daily Mirror) that he had been England’s “villain” for allowing Bale to score the goal.



This is not to diminish Bale, you get a shot on target, you deserve any goal that may follow, but these set-piece goals should not obscure the fact Bale still has so much more to give at this tournament.

Euro 2016 ...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - International Football

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