If you’re up on your transfer rumours right now, you’ll know that the ones concerning Gareth Bale are being revived once again due to the fact that something seems to be amiss between the Welshman and Cristiano Ronaldo at Real Madrid, according to Metro.
Allegedly and in rather school-ground like fashion, the storm has been whipped up by Bale’s agent Jonathan Barnett who in quotes, has alluded to the fact that the Welshman is intent on becoming the world’s greatest player and nothing more which is obviously in contrast to Ronaldo’s entreprenuerism with various off-field endorsements.
In the past, we’ve of course seen Bale take a lot of the flak, sometimes merited and other times not, when Real Madrid have been struggling, particularly last season when Los Blancos went trophyless.
With the boo boys being particularly insufferable at times in the Spanish capital, this has previously sparked reports that Bale might get fed up while craving a return to the Premier League but so far, the Welshman has time and again refuted claims he’s ready to give up on his Real Madrid dream.
Nevertheless, what many of our punters by the bar believe is that Bale will be back in the Premier League one day given his age but when he does return to these shores, who is in with a fighting chance of securing his signature?
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Click on the image below to reveal the five Premier League clubs Gareth Bale could join in the summer.
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Manchester United
Perhaps the most likely destination for Gareth Bale right now is Manchester United with the Red Devils having proved in the last two transfer windows that they’re willing to spend big money under the reign of Ed Woodward.
For a long time now, Red Devils fans have seen Gareth Bale as the natural heir to Ryan Giggs’ throne but under the current regime, it must be said that Louis van Gaal has high hopes for Memphis Depay on the left wing.
That said, Gareth Bale has proved that he can be deployed anywhere along the front line and even as a central striker in his time at Madrid and if United manage to secure the Premier League title when they weren’t expected to this term, perhaps they will then correctly believe that they can go out and land the likes of Bale.
Real Madrid haven’t proved the easiest club to deal with in terms of transfer however! Just ask any United fan about this summer’s Sergio Ramos debacle!
Chelsea
If ever a club needed a huge jolt and a new sense of direction right now, it’s Chelsea whose manager and players simply haven’t continued their spell of dominance like 99.9% of football fans believed they would this season following their title triumph in 2014/15.
The Blues’ slow start to 2015/16 has taken everybody by surprise, not least their manager who has at times looked absolutely baffled by the displays of seasoned professionals such as Cesc Fabregas and Branislav Ivanovic this term.
With the likes of Eden Hazard low on confidence to boot after winning the PFA Player of the Year prize last term, it’s difficult to see why they’ve lost so much form in such a short space of time but that is the reality for Chelsea right now.
With Roman Abramovich still on board of course, Chelsea have proved that they can go out and sign anybody in the past, albeit operating more co-operatively with Financial Fair Play in recent times and Bale has been somebody Chelsea have been easily linked with at a distance by the tabloids down the years.
With the likes of Oscar, Willian, Diego Costa and Hazard performing below par this season, don’t tell us that Mourinho won’t be looking to take his squad to the next level via completing a huge marquee swoop such as Bale or Paul Pogba next summer.
Tottenham
An incredible long shot to think Tottenham could bring Gareth Bale back to White Hart Lane in the very peak of his career, what’s true is that Spurs has a special place in the Welshman’s heart compared to the other teams in this countdown.
The team that nurtured the former Southampton man into the player he is today, everything would depend on Spurs breaking back into the top four to even think about completing a transfer such as this but why not?
Perhaps Bale might consider re-joining Tottenham nearer the end of his career for sentimental reasons but Spurs have always been about mentality and if they can start believing they’re a top club that can finally banish their top four demons, they can then start thinking about attracting that next level type of transfer target.
Manchester City
Like Chelsea and Manchester United, Manchester City represent the other Premier League club willing to splash huge sums of money at once in their pursuit of immediate success.
With this mantra, who’s to say they won’t prioritise a swoop for Gareth Bale if his availability situation changes?
In truth right now, City have of course just splashed a huge £55 million on Kevin De Bruyne who looks every inch a top class player, not to mention £50 million on Raheem Sterling who is also doing well so to make room for Bale with Sergio Aguero also on the books looks a long shot at the minute.
That said, Jesus Navas still remains a favourite of Manuel Pellegrini to rival fans’ confusion and as we know, Gareth Bale could slot in on the right wing as a definite improvement on the inconsistent Spaniard.
Arsenal
He never would, would he?
For any Tottenham supporter reading this article, this is probably where you reach for the X button in the top right hand corner of the screen for obvious reasons but it’s worth noting that Bale used to be an Arsenal fan.
Under the current regime of Arsene Wenger, the Gunners boss always seems to want to prove people wrong while keeping the hand-brake on in regards to not going out and making a statement in signing multiple top class players beyond Petr Cech this past summer.
If this attitude remained the same over the next couple of seasons, you could most definitely rule out the prospect of the Gunners swooping for Bale but if Wenger did end up leaving Emirates Stadium in 2017 like a few tabloids have alluded to of late while the club went in a new direction transfer-wise under a new manager, why not?
