I am not a serial diver: Gareth Bale

Tottenham Hotspur star Gareth Bale insisted on Thursday that he was not a serial diver after fresh allegations against him from Stevenage Borough defender Mark Roberts.

Welsh winger Bale won a crucial penalty in Spurs' 3-1 FA Cup replay victory over Stevenage on Wednesday, but earned criticism from Borough defender Roberts for allegedly going over too easily.

It is the latest accusation of diving against Bale, who also faced criticism for tumbling to the turf to win a penalty in Spurs' recent defeat at Arsenal.

"I've tried to block the cross and I thought he went down very easily," Roberts said of the incident on the BBC.

"That's football at the very highest level, they look for those things. In my mind it's not a penalty. I'm coming from a defender's point of view."

Bale, however, has rejected the suggestions of skulduggery, saying he is often forced to go to ground to avoid injury in tackles.

"If people want to say I'm diving then they can, but I'm trying to get out of the way and save myself, save my career if you like," Bale said.

"It's a bit annoying (when people say I dive) but you've got people flying in at you, you're trying to get out of the way of the challenge. If you stand there, you're going to get a whack.

"You can see why people say you're diving but I'd rather get out of the way than get hurt, that's what it is. It's football, a contact sport, things do happen and you've got to try to be clever with it.

"I'm more likely to try to get out of the way and not get hurt, rather than get hurt. I tend not to dive."