Who has been the better signing - Gareth Bale or Neymar? Real Madrid and Barcelonas landmark signings square off against each other again on Sunday with the Liga title race on the line - but who has proved the best investment? Mar 22, 2014 10:00:00 AM DEBATE By Jon Fisher & Peter Staunton Two of the most high- profile signings of last summers transfer window square off in Sunday nights Clasico as Gareth Bales Real Madrid take on Neymars Barcelona in La Liga. The Welshman has come into fine form following a difficult bedding-in period due to injury as Real Madrid have stormed to the top of the league. For Neymar and Barcelona, 2014 has begun in more desperate fashion as the team have fallen behind their great rivals in league competition and seen the Brazilian sidelined through injury, while the legal saga surrounding his transfer rumbles on. Everything is on the line on Sunday as Barca attempt to repeat their Clasico victory of the autumn in order to fight their way back into the title race. Neymar had the better of things that day but Bales form suggests he could be ready to play a key part in Spanish footballs biggest fixture. With so much at stake, we ask: who has proven the better signing? Goals Jon Fisher and Peter Staunton go head-to-head over the issue … HE OUTPERFORMS NEYMAR IN EVERY CATEGORY By Jon Fisher It was always going to be a tough ask for Gareth Bale to justify his world-record transfer fee, not only to the Real Madrid fans but also the star-studded squad at the Bernabeu. Yet, to watch him tear apart the Schalke defence time and again on Tuesday night, supplying goals for Cristiano Ronaldo and Alvaro Morata in a routine 3-1 victory, you could see he was winning the battle. Not one for boastful proclamations, the unassuming Welshman has had to prove through his performances that Madrid were right to spend so much time, and budget, over the summer to bring him to Spain. Despite being troubled with a couple of niggling injuries, he has lived up to the hype generated from a couple of excellent seasons with Tottenham and is now starting to prosper. Either way you dress it up, he has been impressive. Statistically he outperforms Neymar in every category. Bale has 14 goals in 27 appearances, including four in seven in the Champions League. In comparison, Neymar has managed 10 goals in 28 games, and three in eight in Europes elite club competition. Add in the 14 assists for Bale in all competitions versus 11 for Neymar and the picture is starting to become clear. Barca fans will, of course, argue statistics can be misleading. Broadly speaking theyd be right, but not in this case. In terms of their general impact on their respective teams, there is no argument: Bale has been vastly superior.
Posted on: Sat, 22 Mar 2014 14:21:26 +0000
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