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Five Reasons Why Tottenham May Have Ruled Out Bale Return

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A return to the club for Gareth Bale certainly felt like a great idea in the immediate aftermath of his man of the match display against Liverpool in the Champions League final.

However, as much as I would like to see the Welshman back in a Spurs shirt, I do understand why Daniel Levy and Mauricio Pochettino have reportedly opted against making a move for the 28-year-old.

Here are five reasons why the club have likely ruled out a return for Gareth:

1) Injuries

Despite his stand-out displays for Real Madrid, his injury record since he arrived at the Bernabeu has been pretty bad. 14 separate injuries during his five years in Spain has meant he has missed just under half of all the matches he could have played in.

Combine that with a sizeable transfer fee, and the investment doesn’t look as good as it first appears.

2) Age

At 28 years of age, Bale is heading into the prime of his career. However, if you consider the injuries he has sustained and the fact he has already had 12 years playing as a first-team player, there have to be question marks over how long he can last at the top level.

He certainly has at least four or five years left in him, but it seems the club are more willing to go with someone with fewer miles on the clock.

3) Wages

The Real Madrid star is currently on £400,000 a week (after tax), which is more than double our top wage earner in Harry Kane. The club are not going to break their wage structure, even for a world class player like Bale.

Levy is very inflexible on this matter, and it is likely the main reason why an offer for Bale won’t happen.

4) Style of Play

Poch wants players who press, work hard for the team, and have energy throughout 90 minutes. At Real, the Welsh international simply doesn’t have to deal with the same workload that our manager would ask of him.

Even then, with less expected of him physically, he is susceptible to injury. It may be that combined with the costs of the transfer, the manager just doesn’t see him as the right fit for his team.

5) Other Options

The Evening Standard report that we do want a player who can play in the Welshman’s position but we are more interested in Wilfried Zaha and Anthony Martial. Both players have potential and are younger. Unlike Bale though, they are not the end product.

One of the major concerns will be if he rocks up at Old Trafford, stays injury free and comes back to haunt us, while we are left with a new recruit who isn’t up to the task. Fingers-crossed that doesn’t happen.

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