Signing Gareth Bale on a season-long loan was a major surprise and the prospect of being able to keep him in North London would be a dream, so it’s great news that Real Madrid have slapped an affordable price tag on his head should we wish to turn his loan move permanent.
According to Calciomercato (h/t Mundo Deportivo), Jose Mourinho is keen to keep Bale beyond 2021 and could find Real Madrid facilitating the move as they’re keen to cut ties with the high-earning 31-year-old.
How has Bale fared back at Tottenham?
Not too bad. The Welsh international has made six appearances in all competitions since returning in September, scoring one goal with one assist.
In three Premier League games, Bale has created three chances, made two successful dribbles, won three aerial duels, had six shots with 33% hitting the target, whipped in five crosses with 20% finding a teammate and winning two freekicks.
The 31-year-old had a knee injury which prevented him making his debut until October, so he’s still not 100%. Nevertheless, Calciomercato say Mourinho is pleased with Bale’s performances and doesn’t want him to return to Real next year.
Bale could be signed for cheap
With Zinedine Zidane having fallen out with Bale while Real have been public in their desire to sell him, I think a permanent deal is possible. He’s valued at €15m (£13.5m) which is the same price we paid for Matt Doherty, so we surely wouldn’t hesitate to re-sign the forward.
There’s the question of age, wages and fitness woes, however, as Bale is in the eve of his career, earns a lot of money and hasn’t had an injury-free campaign for some time. Vital Spurs noted that Bale missed 20 games in his final full season at Real due to a calf injury, thigh problem, infection and sprained ankle.
Bale earns £26m-a-year/£500k-per-week in wages at Real too, but we’re only paying a portion of his salary as Los Blancos are covering the rest. Without Real, however, we’d be left with a large bill to pay if we wanted him permanently.
It’s also still early days. There’s been no official bid made on our end and the transfer window is shut until January, so we should curb our expectations until then. Let’s enjoy having Bale back for now.
In other news, here’s why Real Madrid sold Sergio Reguilon to Tottenham