Constantly linked with Gareth Bale, should Tottenham Hotspur actually compete with Liverpool to sign Marco Asensio from Real Madrid instead?
Talk of a return to Tottenham Hotspur for Gareth Bale refuses to go away, with Spanish publication Don Balon claiming earlier this month that Real Madrid president Florentino Perez wanted to swap the Welshman for Christian Eriksen.
That is despite the fact that previously the BBC reported that Bale would not be coming back to Spurs, with his current wages of £400,000-a-week after tax one of several stumbling blocks.
Despite his undoubted talent the forward will also turn 29-years-old next month and that would not by in sync with the young revolution manager Mauricio Pochettino is currently overseeing in North London.
Alternatives at the Bernabeu
Another Los Blancos star who would fit the bill much better is Marco Asensio, someone that Sport says could be sold this summer in order to allow Neymar to be signed from Paris Saint-Germain.
The Brazilian could cost as much as £264m and therefore the sale of Asensio would be necessary to help balance the books, with Liverpool reportedly prepared to pay £176m for the Spain international.
Whether or not Tottenham would be in the position to sanction that sort of fee is doubtful as they continue to fund the building of a new stadium, but with a left-sided attacker clearly being targeted – with the Mirror reporting of an £80m move for Manchester United’s Anthony Martial – then the possibility of signing the 22-year-old should at least be considered.
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