- Gareth Bale has been linked with an exit from Real Madrid next year
- Welshman has struggled with injury woes at the Bernabeu
- Tottenham and Man Utd have been linked with a move for him
- READ MORE: Manchester United’s £179million transfer pursuit takes a fresh twist with Jorge Mendes pulling the strings
While it’s no admission of a concrete interest in bringing Gareth Bale back to Tottenham, Mauricio Pochettino has seemingly dropped a hint.
The 28-year-old left Spurs over four years ago after a stellar spell at White Hart Lane, with the club only now over the last two years or so moving on from that after failing to see the desired results with the money initially reinvested in the squad from his sale.
With troubles brewing in the Spanish capital as Bale continues to struggle with injuries, Pochettino has been coy on the chances of Tottenham swooping, revealing that Bale that still speaks to people at the club while failing to rule out a return in the future.
“Always he keeps in contact with the people here that he worked with in the past. But then I don’t know because I don’t have a close relationship with him or his people,” he is quoted as saying by Goal, while Diario Gol have suggested that neither Spurs not Man Utd value the Welshman over €60m.
“Of course he is a fantastic player and you never know in football what can happen.”
Real Madrid splashed out a then world record fee of £85m to sign Bale from Tottenham in 2013, as per BBC Sport, but naturally, given his fitness problems his value would rightly have decreased and in truth, it could be argued that it’s a surprise that either Spurs or United could be willing to take the big-money gamble of signing him.
Whether that €60m valuation noted above would be enough to satisfy Madrid’s demands remains to be seen, but for a player who is setting a worrying trend, they may have to take a loss.
Bale has made just 10 appearances so far this season, while his tally has been falling per season for the last three years. He’s gone from 48 in the 2014/15 campaign to 31 the following year before making just 27 appearances last season.
In turn, it’s no surprise that there is concern over his future, although he’s certainly enjoyed a successful stint in Spain with a La Liga title, three Champions League trophies and the FIFA Club World Cup now to his name.