Bale Denies Diving

Tottenham Hotspur winger Gareth Bale has denied allegations of diving, despite picking up a yellow card for simulation once again in the 2-1 victory against Liverpool at White Hart Lane.

The Welsh wizard was instrumental in Spurs' success, putting the opener on a plate for Aaron Lennon after another trademark run before he added the second himself with a sumptuous free kick.

He did, however, put it into his own net in unfortunate circumstances after Lennon's attempted goal-line clearance inadvertently thumped the 23-year-old flush in the face before flying into an empty net.

But his performance was once again overshadowed as he received a caution from referee Phil Dowd after being adjudged to have simulated following a challenge from Daniel Agger.

"I thought I got clipped a little bit," he told Sky Sportsafter the game. "Sometimes it happens. You have just got to get on with it."
Spurs had previously suffered three successive defeats before the derby win over West Ham, and after back-to-back victories Andre Villas-Boas' side now sits fifth in the table above Everton and north London rival Arsenal.
"We are not too far off [where we want to be]," Bale added. "There were good results elsewhere for us tonight, which was important.
"We have just got to focus on ourselves, focus on game by game, and I think we are improving in every game."