‘I played with Robin van Persie and Arjen Robben – Spurs star had best left foot I saw'
The Premier League has played host to some of the best left-footed players in football - but one Tottenham talent may top the list.
Michel Vorm has hailed Gareth Bale's left foot as the finest he's ever seen, placing it above a host of Dutch masters. And it's an elite list that the Welsh wizard supposedly tops.
Despite never sharing the pitch with the winger during his tenure at Tottenham, the former Swansea City stopper has recognised the extraordinary talent of Bale's left foot – even eclipsing that of his celebrated compatriots. And that in itself goes to show just who serious Vorm is in his praise of the north London great.
"Gareth Bale is naturally very talented," he said, according to football.london, in collaboration with 888sport. "He's like a machine. And his left foot is...I've seen a lot of good left feet, but his is something else.
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"So you have Arjen Robben, [Robin] van Persie, [Rafael] van der Vaart...but Gareth Bale was unbelievable. I didn't play with him, but I saw his career and when he came back I was assistant manager at Tottenham, helping out when Ryan Mason was [in charge].
"I've seen so many good players. You see naturally talented players like him. But you don't see that often, he was very, very special."
Van der Vaart's tenure at Spurs didn't coincide with Vorm's, but their careers intersected while playing for the Dutch national team. The trio of Van Persie, Robben and Van der Vaart - all 41 - were key figures in the Netherlands squad that fell to Spain in the 2010 World Cup final, while Vorm didn't make it off the bench.
Bale didn't achieve quite the same international success, though he was instrumental in guiding Wales to the Euro 2016 semi-finals. He scored 177 goals in 495 appearances for Tottenham and Real Madrid, but only 21 of those came from his right foot.
Bale's most memorable goal, an overhead kick against Liverpool in the 2018 Champions League final, is often hailed as one of the best in European football history. The strike helped secure victory for Real Madrid and further solidified Vorm's belief that his left foot was superior to any other he had played with.
