Yangcheng Evening News reporter Xu Yangyang

　　"After much deliberation, I am announcing my immediate retirement from the club and the Welsh team. I cannot be more fortunate than to have been able to realize my dream of playing the sport I love. Football has indeed given me some of the best moments in my life, to the tune of 17 seasons. The pinnacle, this is unrepeatable. I want to express my gratitude to everyone who has played a role in this journey, they have helped me, changed my life, and shaped my career, which I just started at 9 years old I never thought about it when I was playing football." This week, Welsh star Gareth Bale bid farewell to the public through his personal social media, which also means that there will be no more "big sages" who "overtake on corners" in football.

　　Debut from Southampton to Tottenham, from defender to striker

　　Gareth Bell was born in Cardiff, Wales in 1989. He is the nephew of Keith Parker, the former striker of the local powerhouse Cardiff City, who is also his first teacher.

Bell's football talent was already revealed when he was 9 years old. He played a 5-a-side football championship on behalf of Cardiff Civil Servant Club, which attracted the attention of Southampton club scouts, and then entered the city of Bath, Somersetshire. The Southampton Satellite Academy begins professional training.

　　On April 17, 2006, Bell made his appearance in the 45th round of the British Championship when Southampton defeated Millwall 2-0 and became the second youngest starter in Southampton's history at the age of 16 years and 275 days. .

In the two seasons from 2005 to 2007, Bell played 45 times for Southampton and scored 5 goals.

In 2007, Southampton's defeat in the Super League made Bell decide to leave, and he wanted to find a bigger and better platform.

　　As a result, Tottenham beat out giants such as Manchester United and Arsenal and spent £5 million to acquire the 18-year-old Bell.

However, Bell spent most of the time from 2007 to 2010 on the bench, and even set a miracle of 24 consecutive substitute appearances.

It wasn't until the third round of the FA Cup against Peterborough in 2001 that he was entrusted with the heavy responsibility of a left winger and made his debut, which became the starting point for him to take off.

By the end of the 2012-2013 season, although Tottenham still missed the top four in the Premier League, Bell scored 26 goals and was named the best player in the Premier League, the best player of the season and the best player selected by the English Footballer and Players Association. Best Newcomer and many other awards.

This also means that it is difficult for Tottenham to support Bell, a big fish, and the time for him to leave is approaching.

　　The first "Mr. Billion" at the peak, won 19 championships in Real Madrid in 9 years

　　On September 1, 2013, La Liga giants Real Madrid announced that Bell officially joined.

Real Madrid signed a 6-year contract with Bell until the summer of 2019. The transfer fee exceeded 91 million euros, including other expenses exceeding 100 million euros. This is the first time in the world football transfer market.

So Bell also entered the heyday of his career. After all, he formed Real Madrid's "BBC combination" with Benzema and Ronaldo, and all of his teammates are today's top stars, so he also entered The harvest period of his career-won 19 championships in 9 years, including 5 Champions League titles, 4 Club World Cup titles, 3 European Super Cup titles, 3 La Liga titles, 3 Spanish Super Cup titles and 1 King's Cup champion.

Bell was also named the best player in the 2018 UEFA Champions League final, and won the Club World Cup Golden Globe in the same year.

　　Real Madrid also specifically mentioned three Bell's classic scenes in the statement issued after learning of Bell's retirement: the unforgettable goal in the Copa del Rey final held in Valencia in 2014; Fantastic goals; goals in the Champions League final in Kyiv in 2018, and the last overhead kick will forever be remembered by those who love football.

Bell's figure will always be linked with the club's history and legends!

　　These three classic moments are all Bell's iconic scenes: the "curve overtaking" in the Copa del Rey, Bell's midfielder gets the ball and advances in a straight line. Straight-line opponents scored single-handedly with a huge speed advantage; in the crucial battle when Real Madrid defeated Atletico Madrid and won the 10th Champions League trophy, Bell scored the key goal with a header and scored the key goal to overtake the score; and competed with Liverpool for the Champions League in 2018 In the final of the championship, Bell came off the bench in the 61st minute and scored two goals in a row. Among them, the key goal to end the suspense of the game was a wonderful upside-down golden hook.

　　However, just from the fact that Bell came off the bench in the 2018 UEFA Champions League final, it can be found that he has passed his peak period. Old age, this is the law of nature, and I am afraid it is also Bell's fate.

　　Complex helps Wales achieve European and World Cup dreams

　　Bale's achievements in football mainly come from the club, not the Welsh men's football team, but it is not difficult to see from his farewell letter that he has far more ink on his Welsh team than the club.

"How can I describe what it means to me to be part of the Welsh team? My answer is that I can't just describe it in words. I know that everyone who is involved in Welsh football will feel the magic and feel it. Affected in a powerful and unique way, I know you feel the same as I do, no words are needed. My journey to the international stage has not only changed my life, but myself. As a Welshman, to be selected To be captain of the Wales team is incomparable to anything I have experienced. I have played and captained Wales 111 times and it is really a dream come true moment." Bale said.

　　Bale has always been the number one star in the Welsh team, and of course the backbone of the team.

On this European third-rate platform, Bell led his team to the semi-finals of the European Cup once, and the knockout round the other time, which can be regarded as the ultimate.

In the Qatar World Cup qualifiers, Bale almost carried Wales forward alone. He scored 9 goals alone, averaging 1 goal every 63 minutes, and led the team to the finals.

In order to maintain his form in the World Cup in Qatar, he even condescended to join the Los Angeles FC of the American Major League to play for half a year to maintain his form. He did not end his career until the World Cup was over.

　　To this day, Bell is still full of affection for the Welsh team, as he himself said: "Now I have to take a step back, but it is not to leave this team that lives in my body and flows in my veins. After all, the red on the jersey Dragons are my love."

　　"Yangcheng Evening News" January 14, 2023, version A09