Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy has assured Jose Mourinho that if the he wishes to sign Gareth Bale during the upcoming January transfer window then he will thrash out the deal required to lure him back to north London.
During a rollercoaster day for the Lilywhites, Mourinho was instilled as Spurs’ new boss just 12 hours after the shock sacking of Mauricio Pochettino on Tuesday evening.
Bale himself has become a peripheral figure at Madrid, often consigned to a role on the bench or being left out of the squad entirely, more recently so since Zinedine Zidane returned to the Los Blancos dugout in March this year.
With Wales confirming their place in next summer’s Euro 2020 following their 2-0 win over Hungary, Bale risked the wrath of his manager after jokingly holding aloft a banner that claimed he preferred playing golf to featuring for Madrid.
The Welshman already has a frosty relationship with the Zidane and the Spanish media after being publicly ridiculed throughout his trophy-laden Madrid career, but the latest antics will have done little to win over the unamused fans and club hierarchy back in Spain.
90min understands, however, that his spell in Madrid could be brought to an end as soon as January, as Levy has given Mourinho assurances that the club will pursue a reunion with their former player if the Portuguese head coach wishes to do so.
It is an idea that Mourinho is not totally objecting to, having admired the 30-year-old’s ability for several years throughout his time as both a manager and a television pundit.
Bale is eager to earn regular playing time ahead of the upcoming European Championships, something that looks increasingly likely to be lessened following recent events. Even still, before the infamous banner, his time under Zidane was limited at best, and the club’s efforts to ship him off to the Chinese Super League during the summer only ended when Madrid pulled the plug at the 11th hour.
Should such a move come to fruition that would see Bale return to the Premier League, the most likely outcome would be a loan move in January. Whether any potential deal would be an initial loan with an option to sign permanently is not yet known, simply due to the matter of finances.
Tottenham would have to cover a substantial amount of Bale’s near
For more from Ross Kennerley, follow him on Twitter!
Let’