Tottenham striker Louis Saha is world class, declares Gareth Bale

Gareth Bale has hailed Louis Saha’s instant impact at Tottenham Hotspur after the French striker made an impressive start to his career at White Hart Lane.

The 33-year-old, who joined from Everton on a free transfer, scored a thrilling brace as Spurs thrashed Newcastle United by five goals last Saturday, prompting Bale to describe his new team-mate as “world-class”.

“He played fantastic,” he told Spurs’ website. “We all know what he’s capable of, we’ve played against him year after year.

“He’s always been a threat against us and to have him on our team now is a real boost. He’s a quality player, scored two goals and thoroughly deserved them.

“He’s shown in training already that he’s a world class player, he’s played at the highest level and we’re delighted to have him.”

Goals from Benoit Assou-Ekotto, Niko Kranjcar, Emmanuel Adebayor and Saha’s brace eased Tottenham to victory over Alan Pardew’s men – and Bale admits Spurs’ fantastic performance was made easier by their early goal.

“We worked hard from the start, got an early goal and that put us in the driving seat,” said Bale. “We capitalised on the first goal and kept getting more.

“The team played fantastically well and we thoroughly deserved the win. A lot of teams come here and try to defend and then nick a goal. It’s important for us to score the first goal and then keep attacking.”