Manchester United have reignited their interest in Gareth Bale, and are set to lodge a bid to sign the Real Madrid superstar this summer.
According to a report by Daily Mirror, Gareth Bale is back on Manchester United’s transfer wishlist in the wake of his comments after the Champions League final. The Welshman looks set to leave Real Madrid in the summer transfer window after iterating that he needs to play “week in week out”.
Bale completed five seasons at Real Madrid with a bang, scoring a spectacular overhead goal to win the UEFA Champions League for the fourth time in five years. But, his stint at the Bernabeu has been quite the mixed bag, having been one of the top scorers at the club while consistently falling down the pecking order at the same time.
Injuries have played a major role in his declining stature, but the fact that he was the second highest goalscorer for Real Madrid despite starting just 24 games is testament to his quality. Bale though, has made it clear that he intends to play “week in week out” next season, and is set to seek assurances over his playing time from Zinedine Zidane and Florentino Perez.
While the player is reluctant to end his Real Madrid career just yet, he could well be on his way, with his relationship with Zidane reaching breaking point. With Bale likely to become available in the summer, Manchester United seem to have reignited their interest in him.
The Premier League heavyweights hold a long-standing interest in the 28-year-old, having attempted to sign him in the summers of 2013 and 2016. Manchester United are now hoping to be third time lucky as Jose Mourinho looks to revamp his squad ahead of the 2018-19 season.
Mourinho has indeed been yearning for a player who can operate naturally on the right flank, with Willian also believed to be a target. The arrival of Alexis Sanchez in the January transfer window didn’t solve the problem either, with the Manchester United attack instead ending up becoming eerily left-heavy.
Bale, when fit and firing, is still one of the best attacking players in the world, and can provide a definite boost to Manchester United and their chances of returning to the top of English football. That he will not be playing at the World Cup is another positive as the Real Madrid superstar will be able to participate in their entire pre-season.
Meanwhile, Real Madrid are unlikely to stand in his way, should he decide to leave, with Zidane eyeing attacking reinforcements this summer. What does stand in Manchester United’s way is the fact that Real Madrid are looking to recoup more than the £89 million they paid to sign him in 2013, with the report suggesting that the asking price could be as much as double the figure.
Another hurdle in their way could be in the form of Bayern Munich, who are eyeing Bale as a possible successor to Arjen Robben. Premier League rivals Manchester City and Chelsea had also been weighing up a possible move, but have pulled out of the race to sign the Wales international, leaving Bayern as the only other contenders apart from Manchester United.
It will be interesting to see if Manchester United are willing to break their transfer record to sign Bale this summer, with the Welshman open to joining them. What appears to be certain is that his stint at Real Madrid is coming to an end.
