da esoccer bet： Brit’s abroad don’t always do well. From sunburnt, lager-swilling stag parties, to ignorant folk who believe talking louder in English is a reasonable attempt to make contact with foreign men and women, we are often looked at as bad travellers. These may seem like terrible stereotypes, but they must have a semblance of truth to have been formed in the first place.
da mrbet： Much the same with the typical British footballer. A handful have taken steps to improve their game by moving to clubs on the continent, but as a whole Brit’s tend not to leave the comforts of football at home. After all, the number of English or British players plying their trade on foreign soil over the years far fewer than many other of the top nationalities.
But, one young man from Cardiff bucked the trend of the majority of British players in the Premier League and has now become the leading British goal-scorer in La Liga history. Not even three years into his spell at Real Madrid, Gareth Bale has succeeded where many fail, or even fear to tread. Recently surpassing Gary Lineker’s feat of 42 goals for Barcelona, set nearly 30 years ago, the Wales talisman has already won more with Real than he ever would at Spurs – or arguably any other Premier League side – joining a club as ambitious as himself.
But where might the next Bale come from? I don’t necessarily mean in talent – his is a unique one that is not easily replicated – but in terms of being a quality British export from the Premier League making as big of a splash as the 26-year-old Welshman has at Real Madrid? David Beckham and Michael Owen both tried of course, part of the Galacticos era at the Bernabau in the early/mid 2000’s, but neither really had the kind of effect on the pitch that the current No.11 at the Madrid side has.
Is there anyone playing in the Premier League right now who can cope with the very different demands of European football as well as the Welsh winger? Who can represent the best of what the UK has to offer and help enhance the reputation of the Brit abroad, in footballing terms anyway? Is there anyone with enough skill to attract the attention of one of the premier clubs around Europe? Or are our players destined to cozy up at home, safe in the familiar surroundings of the Premier League?
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The most obvious candidate that springs to mind is actually plying his trade at Bale’s old club Spurs. Harry Kane is currently setting the the Premier League alight with his goalscoring feats for Mauricio Pochettino’s high-flying Tottenham side. He may not have the pace or the flair of his former team-mate, but his natural goalscoring ability is sure to attract some admiring glances from the continent’s biggest clubs. If he continues to match, or surpass, his goal tallies from this and last season then the lure of a scorer may be too great to ignore, even if he is from a country not really known for it’s footballing exports. And with Daniel Levy as his chairman, it likely wouldn’t take too much persuading to see the north Londoner’s prize asset sold off in the future for the right fee.
Looking around the rest of the league, you don’t really see too many other Brits with the kind of talents that would attract the bigger European sides. Bale’s fellow countryman Aaron Ramsey is rumoured to be on Barcelona’s radar, but aside from the Arsenal man, few stand out. Looking at the current England squad for example, it’s hard to highlight one player who has both the talent and the character to play abroad. Eric Dier came to this country from Portuguese football and it seems to have stood him in good stead, the 22-year-old rapidly becoming as important as Kane or Dele Alli for Spurs.
Indeed, given his prior experience of the continent there is every chance Dier may move back one day. Team-mate Alli has the skill, but at such a young age it’s hard to predict whether he will challenge himself and move abroad in his career as, at the moment at least, he seems like a very family orientated ‘homeboy’, but then the same could have been said of Bale when he was at Spurs.
No one really knows why British footballers plying their trade on foreign soil are so few and far between, and it’s a topic that no doubt warrants a much longer discussion than is possible here. Perhaps the comforts of their own language and culture are too great, or maybe the Premier League brings all the best the world has to offer to them, meaning there is no reason to move. But, whatever the reason, hopefully it won’t be another 30 years before we see a British player setting records in a continental league.
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