Gareth Bale said Tottenham can be “very competitive” in the title race after his first goal for Spurs since 2013 sealed a 2-1 win over Brighton.
Bale came off the bench to head the winner to move Tottenham up to second in the Premier League.
Spurs are now two points behind leaders Liverpool and Bale savoured what he described as a “great feeling” after scoring his first goal since re-joining the club from Real Madrid.
Asked how competitive Tottenham can be this season, the Welshman told Sky Sports: “Very competitive.
“We know not to get too carried away, we know it is going to be a long season and there are some great teams. We are just going to keep working hard and go from there.”
A knee injury delayed Bale’s introduction to the Spurs team following his return from Real Madrid but Jose Mourinho said last week that the 31-year-old was ready to “fly”.
Bale celebrates his winner vs Brighton
Tottenham Hotspur FC via Getty ImagesBrighton had threatened to frustrate Tottenham on Sunday after Tariq Lamptey scored a controversial equaliser after Harry Kane had put Spurs ahead.
But Bale came off the bench to head a cross from Sergio Reguilon past Brighton keeper Robert Sanchez.
Bale said: “It is a great feeling. I just want to come on and do a job for the team. I was lucky enough to get the goal so I am very happy.
“Everyone always talks about individual play but I have always said I am a team player. If I had come on and just helped the team and we won 2-1 then I would have been just as happy. The most important thing is the collectiveness of the team. We work together, we work hard and we will enjoy this evening.
“I have not played a lot of football since coming here, I had a little problem with my knee from the international games, so it has taken a bit of time. I am being patient, working hard in training, working hard when I get chances. I just need to keep working as hard as I can.”
Tottenham were not at their best against Brighton but they did enough to bounce back from their 1-0 Europa League defeat away at Antwerp.
Bale said: “It was a great reaction from the team. I think we are also learning how to see out games which is good and we are growing every game, even if we are making mistakes we are learning from them. We can only use that as a positive.”
