We can win every tournament we’re in: Bale

Welshman’s goal clinches Copa del Rey for Real in El Clasico .

MADRID:

Gareth Bale was ecstatic with his 84th minute match-winning goal as Real Madrid defeated Barcelona 2-1 in the Copa del Rey final on Wednesday.

“It’s obviously a great feeling, but the most important thing is the team worked hard all game,” said Bale. “I thought we deserved to win. It is my first trophy and hopefully the first of many.”



The Welshman, who was under criticism for underperforming after his record signing from Tottenham Hotspurs in September, carried his team to victory in the absence of star player Cristiano Ronaldo.

With the clock running down and Madrid tied at 1-1 with rivals Barcelona, Bale set off on a stunning individual run and eloquently finished with the deciding goal, helping Madrid win the cup for the 19th time.

The goal was the Welshman’s 20th of the season, but until his crowning moment at the Mestalla, there was a sense that he had failed to perform when it really mattered in the biggest games.

But Bale silenced his critics and received immaculate praise from teammates by being the standout performer in the final

“The goal was incredible, I don’t think I’ve seen anything like it,” said Xabi Alonso of the Welshman’s brilliant goal. “It looked like the ball was going out and he was under pressure, he ran off the pitch to keep it in, it was just amazing.”

Afterwards, a beaming Bale appeared before the world’s media happy to admit that winning his first trophy as a Madrid player had been the highlight of his career to date.

“It’s a great experience for me in my first real, proper final,” he said. “Obviously it was a great result, and everybody’s happy.

“I think we have to aim as high as we can. We can win every tournament we’re in. We’ll be working as hard as we can to win every title.”

I’m truly disappointed, says Martino

Barcelona manager Gerardo Martino was upset with the loss to archrivals Madrid. However, the coach intends to finish his current contract with the Catalan giants, which runs to the end of next season.

“I am in profound pain because of the defeat and for the people who support us,” said Martino. “I can’t imagine a defeat more painful but my future does not depend on this result.

“As I have been saying in recent weeks, I don’t think my future will change because of everything we have lost, just as it wouldn’t if we had won.”

“Today [Wednesday] was a tough blow, our expectations for the match were very high.

“Maybe we lacked depth, but we had a lot of control. When we had the game in our grip we were hit on the counter and that made us lose the match.”

Published in The Express Tribune, April 18^th, 2014.

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