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Real Madrid are ready to sell Gareth Bale in the summer, but are aware that finding a suitor will not be easy, the Telegraph reports.
The Wales international’s future has been hanging in the balance ever since Zinedine Zidane openly declared last summer that Bale’s departure would suit all parties involved. However, a move to China fell apart in the last minute, because the Spanish giants distanced themselves from negotiations.
At that moment, Real Madrid felt that the club deserved a transfer fee for the move. However, it looks increasingly likely that letting him leave for free might be the only option available.
The player’s agent Jonathan Barnett mentioned in a recent interview with ESPN that Bale was not interested in a move to the MLS. He also reiterated that the Welshman would not move in January and also that he might stay at the Santiago Bernabeu beyond the summer.
He's going nowhere [in January]. It's very unlikely [that he will leave in the summer].
Despite his comments, the La Liga giants are still interested in offloading Bale.
Bale does not have too many suitors willing to pay his mammoth transfer fee
The biggest problem regarding offloading the Welshman is his valuation by Real Madrid. The Spanish giants are reluctant to let Bale leave without recuperating some of the astronomical transfer fee they paid for him in 2013.
The former Tottenham Hotspur player joined Los Blancos for a then world-record transfer fee of £85m and has won four Champions League crowns with the club so far. However, recurring injuries have hurt his chances and that is one of the reasons why potential suitors are wary of any deal.
Manchester United have been long-time admirers, but the Red Devils have lost interest in recent times due to the player’s age. Bale will be 31 this summer and might not be as enticing to the Premier League giants anymore. Tottenham Hotspur, on the other hand, do not have the finances to broker a deal, so a return to the Premier League could be off the table for the Welshman.
The situation at the Bernabeu has not been helped with Bale’s off-field antics, especially the “Wales, Golf, Madrid, in that order” episode in November. Since then, the Welshman has failed to score in seven appearances for the club, three of which have been starts.
Real Madrid are currently participating in the Spanish Super Cup in Saudi Arabia, but Bale is missing due to a chest infection.
Bale’s future still hangs in the balance at the moment, even though he is contracted to the club until 2022. Real Madrid could be slowly coming to the realization that to offload the Welshman, they might actually have to let him go for free.
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