Manchester United are in advanced talks to sign Real Madrid superstar Gareth Bale.
According to the Manchester Evening News United passed up on the chance to make a move for Cristiano Ronaldo as the clubs manager Jose Mourinho and CEO Ed Woodward both see Bale as a better option.
Bale moved to Real from Spurs in 2013 in a then World Record £85 million deal, and although he has enjoyed plenty of success in the Spanish capital, winning four Champions League titles, he has never really been accepted by the clubs fans.
Last season the Wales international struggled for regular game time under Zinedine Zidane. The 28-year-old was left on the bench for the Champions League final against Liverpool last May, although he came of the bench to remind everybody of his world class ability by scoring a match winning brace, which included a gravity defying bicycle kick that will go down as one of the greatest goals every scored in a major final.
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Bale did however, state immediately after that game in Kiev that he would be considering his options this summer due a lack of regular game time at the Bernabeu. It was thought though that this may have changed due to the resignation of Zidane and the departure of Ronaldo to Juventus, but Bale’s agent Jonathan Barnett has recently claimed that this is not necessarily the case.
New Real coach Julen Lopetegui is set for a meeting with the talented attacker and his representatives soon with the Welshman’s camp looking for cast iron assurances that he will be made a focal point in Los Blancos first team.
However, the report suggests that talks over a move to Old Trafford are at an advanced stage and it seems that Manchester United may finally land a player they have been trying to sign ever since he was a teenager at Southampton.