Tottenham Hotspur continue to be linked with a move to re-sign Gareth Bale.
Real Madrid forward Gareth Bale
Reports from Spanish newspaper Don Balon are suggesting that Real Madrid superstar Gareth Bale is interested in a return to Tottenham Hotspur – but there are a host of reasons why fans shouldn’t get too excited just yet.
Bale, 28, made his name with Tottenham following a 2007 move from Southampton, where he had emerged as one of the top young talents in English football.
The Welshman hit hit 55 goals in 203 games for Spurs, including 26 goals in his final season with the club, earning a then-world-record move to Real Madrid in the summer of 2013.
With 70 goals in 159 games for Real, Bale has cemented himself as a superstar, but his injury woes have damaged him of late, whilst the emergence of players such as Marco Asensio and Isco means that Bale may be somewhat expendable in 2018.
Now, Don Balon claim that Bale does have his heart set on a return to England at some stage, but whilst Chelsea and Manchester United are keen, he would like to return to Tottenham.
Spurs fans may be excited about the possibility of Bale making a comeback to North London, but there are a number of reasons why Tottenham supporters should cool the jets on the idea of Bale returning.
Firstly, Don Balon’s record for accuracy is…less than stellar. Tottenham fans would be forgiven for immediately writing off the Bale report given previous stories from Don Balon, and that’s before even getting into the nuts and bolts of a deal.
Even if Real do consider offloading Bale, the chances are that Tottenham would struggle to afford him, both in terms of transfer fee and wages, given Daniel Levy’s frugal nature and the payments for Tottenham’s new stadium.
Real could offer something of a discount, but that would surely have to include a Spurs player heading in the opposite direction, and given Bale’s injury problems of late, Tottenham would be foolish to give up Christian Eriksen, Dele Alli or Harry Kane – meaning Bale back to Spurs still doesn’t yet seem realistic.
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