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Former Liverpool striker Dean Saunders believes Newcastle United would be the perfect club for Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale to join this summer.
The Magpies have been in an impressive transformational phase under Eddie Howe since the English manager took over last November.
The Tyneside club became the richest club in world football after a Saudi-led consortium takeover in October. With some January signings, Howe did a commendable job with his squad.
When he took over, they were sitting in 19th place in the Premier League and table and were without a win. However, Newcastle finished the season comfortably mid-table in 11th and are looking to push on for a potential European challenge this season.
Bale, 32, is set to leave Real Madrid following the expiration of his contract and comes with an abundance of European pedigree.
The BBC (via CaughtOffside) reports that Newcastle will rival Bale's former side Tottenham Hotspur for the signing of the 32-year-old this summer.
Saunders believes Howe's side would be an ideal destination for the Welsh winger this summer, telling talkSPORT:
"If I could pick a club for him to go to now, I’d say sign for Newcastle. They’ve got a project; they’re going in the right direction – he would slot in."
He continued:
“The fans right now in Newcastle, because I’ve been there and I worked there – and I realise how much they love the club – right now they could sell 80,000 season tickets.”
Real Madrid star Gareth Bale would bring valuable experience to Newcastle
Gareth Bale has spent nine years at Real Madrid, winning five UEFA Champions League trophies alongside three La Liga titles.
He made 258 appearances for Los Blancos, scoring 106 goals and contributing 67 assists.
The Welshman also has Premier League experience, having previously played for Tottenham Hotspur. He boasts a record of 237 games played for Spurs, scoring 72 goals and contributing 60 assists.
It was with the north London side where he started to grow into one of Europe's top talents, flourishing on the left wing at White Hart Lane.
The form shown by Bale during his time at Spurs led to Real Madrid signing him for over £90 million in 2013, a world record fee back then.
He then returned to Tottenham in 2020 on-loan before returning to Madrid last season where he claimed his fifth Champions League trophy.
Newcastle boast the impressive Allan Saint-Maximin on the left side of their attack so Bale could be used on the right-wing in place of Ryan Fraser.
