Bale out: Will Welsh wizard been seen again in Tottenham shirt?
Tottenham superstar Gareth Bale is in turmoil after the club turned down a world record £82million bid for him from Real Madrid.
The 24-year-old missed his club's pre-season friendly in Hong Kong on
Saturday - and cannot see himself wearing the white of Tottenham again.
Manager Andre Villas Boas has diplomatically put the Welshman's absence
from this week's Barclays Asia Trophy tournament down to a muscle
strain. But the reality is that the player is physically fit to play -
but mentally shattered.
He has set his heart on a move
to Madrid to play Champions League football alongside global superstars
Cristiano Ronaldo, Mesut Ozil, Luka Modric and Karim Benzema.
But the final decision on his dream move rests with Spurs chairman
Daniel Levy, who is digging his heels in and insisting Bale fulfils the
remaining three years of his contract.
With Wales missing from next summer's World Cup, Bale is desperate to
test himself in Europe's biggest competition and faces turning 25 in a
year's time having played just one season at that level.
Missing in action: Bale sat out Spurs' 6-0 win victory over South China on Saturday.
Bale, who scored 31 goals for
club and country from midfield last season, is currently unable to
contemplate new contract talks with Spurs, even though it could provide
him with a get-out in a year's time.
The player is terrified that Levy - known as the toughest negotiator in
the game - will simply refuse to let him leave whatever the price. But
Real, backed by their legendary ambassador Zinedine Zidane, are
confident they will eventually get their man.
Spurs will not confirm that an official
written bid has been made but they are aware of the amount Real are
willing to offer to secure Bale, which exceeds the world record £80m
they paid Manchester United for Ronaldo in 2009.
Tasty: Bale wants to join the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo at Real Madrid.
For the current Footballer of
the Year, playing alongside some of the planet's finest players is not
just a dream right now, it feels like a necessity.
Having just turned 24 and privately sceptical about Tottenham's chances
of improving on last season's position of fifth given the strength of
the Manchester United, Manchester City, Chelsea and Arsenal, Bale faces
the prospect in a year's time of celebrating his 25th birthday with just
one season of Champions League football behind him; no record for a
player rated by Jose Mourinho as the third-most valuable in the world
behind Lionel Messi and Ronaldo.
That is the over-riding factor in his thinking despite many things to
keep him in England. He likes his manager, his family are settled in
England with baby daughter Alba born earlier this year and he has a
lucrative contract promoting BT Sport's coverage of the Premier League.
Final say: Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy is a tough negotiator
But when a footballing legend
like Zidane courts you and Real Madrid back it up with a world-record
offer to play in the biggest club competition of all, it is hard not to
have your head turned.
As a
close friend of Bale's said recently: 'Which player wouldn't want to
play with Modric, Ozil and Ronaldo as team-mates. Tottenham is a
fantastic club, but it's not Real Madrid.'
The problem Bale faces is his future is not entirely up to him.
Tottenham's chairman is determined to turn his club into one of
England's biggest and does not think selling his best player would look
good.
With three years left
on his contract, it puts Bale in an awkward position, one where he
hopes common sense will prevail from Levy. Certainly with the money,
he'd be able to sign four top-class players.
Villas-Boas, a close ally until now, refused to answer questions about Bale's future after yesterday's game.
But, quizzed repeatedly, he fell back on the same phrase.
Most wanted: Manager Andre Villas-Boas is desperate to keep hold of Bale.
'I won't comment on anything. I am so sorry,' he said. 'I can't speak about speculation.'
With any chairman apart from Levy, you'd think money would talk and
Real are confident their massive world-record offer will eventually seal
the deal with Tottenham's new director of football Franco Baldini
leading negotiations.
However Bale, a player labelled sensitive by his former manager Harry
Redknapp, is petrified Levy will simply refuse to let him go – and his
anguish about that is considerable, leaving AVB a massive problem about
how to motivate a desperately unhappy player.
From Madrid's point of view, President Florentino Perez is simply
refusing to countenance missing out on his No1 Galactico target having
seen Brazil's Neymar sweep into rivals Barcelona earlier this summer.
The No 11 shirt has already been earmarked for the Welsh wizard, whose
31 goals for club and country last season saw him collect a clean sweep
of individual player of the year awards.
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho, in charge of Madrid last season, admits
he hasn't batted an eyelid at the mouth-watering summers Real are
prepared to pay.
'He has an
unbelievable shot, an unbelievable action, scores last-minutes goals
that win games. So I think if you forget Messi and Ronaldo, the kid is
fantastic. When I read some numbers I think this kid will be worth every
pound that people are speaking about.'
Without Bale, Spurs beat South China 6-0 during torrential rain in Hong
Kong. Tottenham's next friendly is against Monaco on Saturday and
Villas Boas insisted: 'There is a big possibility he (Bale) could be
fit. He is going to be fit to join the team for training on Wednesday.'
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