本文节选自Sports Illustrated的The Top Moments of Gareth Bale’s Career一文，作者为Marcus Krum

近日，加雷斯-贝尔宣布退出职业生涯。贝尔在18年的职业生涯中获得了5座欧冠奖杯，4座联赛冠军，两座国内杯赛冠军和一系列年度最佳球员奖。他还带领威尔士国家队两度打入欧洲杯正赛，一度打入世界杯决赛圈。

Bale made a career out of captivating fans by capturing the spotlight time and time again.

captivating：迷人的，有魅力的  Someone or something that is captivating fascinates or attracts you.

下面，我们就来盘点一下贝尔职业生涯中的部分高光时刻——

1. 面对国米打入帽子戏法

既2009-10赛季的显眼表现后，21岁的贝尔在热刺站稳了脚跟，并在面对国米的欧冠比赛中首发登场。上半场热刺被打得濒临崩溃，下半场贝尔便爆发了：

Bale was unfazed coming out of the half. Twice he streaked down the left sideline past Maicon, one of the most accomplished right backs of his generation, and pummeled the ball into the goal at the far post. He scored a third in the 91st minute to bring the deficit to 4–3. The comeback fell short, but it surely inspired Tottenham, who beat Inter 3–1 at home several weeks later.

贝尔面对上半场的惨案一点不慌。他两次从左边路突爆了当时最顶尖的右后卫之一麦孔，将球打入球门远角，并在第91分钟打入第三球，将比分追至4-3。虽然最终并没有反败为胜，但让热刺士气大振，几周后在主场3-1击败了国米。

unfazed：不紧张的  not disconcerted; unperturbed

streak：这里作动词，表示“疾驰” If something or someone streaks somewhere, they move there very quickly.

pummel：（用拳头）连续打，这里可以简单理解为“用力射门”

2. 转会皇马

贝尔在北伦敦逐渐让自己变成了欧洲足坛的香饽饽。他的远射与速度帮助热刺继续争夺欧战席位，为他赢得了2012-13赛季英超官方最佳球员和PFA英超最佳球员，以及西班牙豪门皇家马德里的目光：

既前一年刚刚挖来中场球员莫德里奇后，皇马花费了当时创纪录的1.11亿美元买下了24岁的贝尔。当时热刺的主席列维颇费口舌，据称都和贝尔陷入了僵持后，才放弃了这位珍贵的年轻边锋。最终，热刺获得了破纪录的转会费，皇马则完成了重组，成为了西甲和欧冠冠军的有力争夺者。

Having just poached midfielder Luka Modrić the year before, Los Blancos spent a then-world-record $111 million to secure the 24-year-old Bale. It took some convincing (and a reported standoff with the star) for Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy to let go of the prized young winger. In the end, Spurs nabbed the record fee and Madrid retooled to go after La Liga and the Champions League.

poach：偷猎，窃取。这里指把（对方球员）挖过来

it took some convincing...：经过激烈的讨论/争论

standoff：僵局 A standoff is a situation in which neither of two opposing groups or forces will make a move until the other one does something, so nothing can happen until one of them gives way.

3. 2014年国王杯战胜巴萨

贝尔在西班牙首都的第一个赛季几乎没有错过任何比赛。他在27场联赛中打进15球并送出12次助攻。然而，皇马在联赛中步履蹒跚，10年来首次掉到第三。然而，奖杯的争夺仍未结束。在国王杯决赛的国家德比中，贝尔开始了他的表演：

在比赛的最后几分钟，皇马和巴萨两个死对头陷入了僵局。这时，贝尔在左路接队友传球，转身看到了有些不知所措的巴尔特拉。他假意用力将球一碰，抹过了巴尔特拉。后者试图将他拦住，却徒劳无功，随后贝尔追上球，将球打入小门。从任何角度来讲，这都是一个经典的贝尔式进球：将球推过右后卫，高速奔袭完成人球分过，在关键位置沉着完成射门。

The two archrivals were deadlocked heading into the game’s waning minutes. Receiving a ball down the left flank, Bale turned to see defender Marc Bartra flat-footed. He took a seemingly heavy touch and maneuvered around Bartra, whose attempt to shield him from the ball was futile, before latching back onto it and finishing cooly between the legs of the goalkeeper. It was a classic Bale goal in every sense of the word: The push of the ball past the right back, the otherworldly pace to catch up, and the composed finish in a critical spot.

deadlock：僵局 If a dispute or series of negotiations reaches deadlock, neither side is willing to give in at all and no agreement can be made.

flat-footed：扁平足的，笨拙的，手足无措的。这里或许也可以理解为“位置平行的？”没有查到相关表达，因此提出，欢迎大家讨论

maneuver：巧妙地移动

latch onto：紧紧抓住 

otherworldly：超凡脱俗的 Otherworldly people, things, and places seem strange or spiritual, and not much connected with ordinary things.

4. 带领威尔士杀入2016欧洲杯半决赛

2016年，贝尔带领威尔士在欧洲杯预选赛中以7球的优势带领球队突围进入正赛。人们为这一壮举欢呼，但很少有人对这支威尔士抱有期望。这时，贝尔再度站了出来，他不仅带领球队挺入淘汰赛，更是在淘汰赛中继续着他的表演：

奇迹继续，威尔士在16强战中险胜北爱尔兰。随后以真正的大卫战歌利亚的方式以3-1击败了皇马队友阿扎尔领衔的比利时。这可能是这个国家在球场上最伟大的时刻。虽然他们在半决赛中输给了最终的冠军葡萄牙队，但这一历史性的成绩将永载这个国家的足球史册。

The miracle continued when Wales scraped past Northern Ireland in the round of 16. Then, in a true David vs. Goliath fashion, Bale and Co. dispatched Real Madrid teammate Eden Hazard’s Belgium 3–1. It was perhaps the nation’s greatest-ever moment on a pitch. Wales fell to eventual champion Portugal in the semifinals, but the historic run will forever live on in the country’s soccer lore.

dispatch：有“处决”的意思，这里指“击败”

5. 2018欧冠决赛大显神威

在这场决赛前，贝尔还在对自己出场时间变少表示不满。但在替补登场后，他的出奇发挥帮助皇马拿下了欧冠三连冠：

贝尔在比赛第61分钟替补登场，此时双方1-1战平。而他的上场可谓立竿见影：他观察马塞洛的传中后腾空而起，用一记完美的倒钩将球打入球门上角，卡里乌斯鞭长莫及。就连当时的皇马主教练，擅长神仙球的齐达内也不敢相信他所看到的一切。贝尔在比赛的最后几分钟抓住卡里乌斯的失误再进一球，确保皇马拿到了欧冠三连冠。

Bale arrived off the bench in a 1–1 tie in the 61st minute and made an immediate and shocking impact. Left back Marcelo whipped a cross into the box with some pace, and Bale launched himself into the air to hit a perfectly-timed overhead kick past goalkeeper Loris Karius and into the top corner. Even manager Zinedine Zidane, who had his own penchant for stunning goals, couldn’t quite believe what he saw. Bale got another goal in the final minutes of the match on an error by Karius to secure Real Madrid’s third consecutive Champions League title.

penchant for：特别的喜好，倾向于 If someone has a penchant for something, they have a special liking for it or a tendency to do it. 

consecutive：连续的 Consecutive periods of time or events happen one after the other without interruption.

6. 绝平助洛杉矶FC获美职联总决赛冠军

2022年，32岁的贝尔决定把天赋带到美职联。他加入了洛杉矶FC，虽然没有为其贡献很多进球，但在关键时刻，他又大显神威：

洛杉矶FC在西部半决赛的最后时刻击败了洛杉矶银河，然后在西部决赛中击败了奥斯汀，首次闯入美职联总决赛。在与费城联合的一场你来我往的交锋中，贝尔于第97分钟替补登场。尽管洛杉矶FC在第124分钟3-2落后，但四分钟后，这名威尔士超级替补便在最后时刻扳平比分，将比赛拖入点球大战。最终洛杉矶FC获胜。

LAFC found a late winner against the L.A. Galaxy in the conference semifinals then dominated Austin FC in the conference final to reach its first ever MLS Cup final. A wacky back-and-forth match against the Philadelphia Union saw Bale come onto the pitch in the 97th minute and his side go down 3–2 in the 124th. That scoreline stood for all of four minutes, when the Welsh super sub sent home a last-ditch effort to equalize and send things to penalties, where LAFC would ultimately prevail.

back-and-forth：来来回回的，你来我往的

last-ditch：孤注一掷的  A last-ditch action is done only because there are no other ways left to achieve something or to prevent something from happening. It is often done without much hope that it will succeed. 

7. 2022年，第一场世界杯决赛圈比赛

既欧洲杯的辉煌之后，贝尔梦想着将他的祖国带到更大的舞台上。在2022年的欧洲预选赛中，威尔士通过附加赛相继战胜了奥地利和乌克兰，自1958年以来首次重返世界杯：

贝尔在红龙军团64年来的第一次世界杯比赛中毫不意外地再次充当了球队英雄。在以1-0落后美国队的情况下，这位33岁的球员在第82分钟制造了一粒点球，并面对门将特纳将球罚进，将比分逼平。随后威尔士以0-2负于伊朗，0-3负于英格兰。虽然他们和2016年欧洲杯一样的梦想最终破灭，但这个仅有300多万人口的国家终于迎来了几十年来梦寐以求的世界杯时刻。

Bale unsurprisingly played hero once again for the Dragons in their first World Cup match in 64 years. Trailing the U.S. 1–0, It was the 33-year-old that drew a penalty and buried it past goalkeeper Matt Turner in the 82nd minute. The dream of a run like its Euro 2016 campaign fizzled out after a 2–0 loss to Iran and 3–0 defeat to England, but the country of just over three million finally got the World Cup moment it desired for decades.

fizzle out：告吹，失败