Gareth Bale’s agent has dismissed the possibility of Gareth Bale leaving Real Madrid this summer, despite speculation over his future at the club.
The Wales international joined Los Blancos in a world record £86million transfer in 2013, and enjoyed an impressive debut campaign which ended in UEFA Champions League and Copa del Rey glory. This time round, though, the former Tottenham Hotspur forward has often been a scapegoat for the notoriously hard-to-please Real fans, raising doubts over his future at the club.
Both Chelsea and Manchester United would jump at the chance to offer Bale a return to England, but when asked of such a possibility, his agent Jonathan Barnett told Sky Sports HQ: “Why would he look to go elsewhere? Real Madrid are the number one club in the world. There’s always interest in him – but as far as we are concerned Gareth Bale will be at Real next summer.”
During his eye-catching first season at the Bernabeu, Bale scored 22 goals in 44 appearances in all competitions, and assisted 19 more. This time round his figures aren’t quite up to that standard, yet they still make for impressive reading. The 25-year-old has featured 45 times for Carlo Ancelotti’s side, and has recorded 17 goals whilst creating a further 11 for his team-mates.
He has, though, earned a reputation for being too selfish with the ball, and was jeered earlier in the season for taking a shot on goal when Cristiano Ronaldo was better positioned to score. And on Tuesday night he was substituted in the 2-1 Champions League semi-final defeat to Juventus for a disappointing display, although his coach has since defended his performance.
Speaking about the former Southampton youngster’s contribution against the Bianconeri in Turin, the second-leg of which takes place next week, Ancelotti reasoned: “Gareth Bale was tired; he’s just come back from an injury and he’s just too important for us. He’s our most dangerous player and because he was tired, I preferred not to take any risks and I took him off.”
Will the comments of Jonathan Barnett be enough to deter Chelsea and/or Manchester United making a bid for Gareth Bale during the summer window?
