Gareth Bale will not be headed to China.
Though a transfer deal — which would have sent Bale to the Chinese club Jiangsu Suning where he’d make over £1 million a week — was almost in place, Real Madrid asked for a transfer fee, according to The Telegraph. What’s more, the team’s owner didn’t like the idea of selling low on Bale, who cost a £85 million transfer fee when he arrived from Tottenham Hotspur in 2013. With those factors in play, the deal deteriorated.
Bale has recently clashed with Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane, who was ready to move on from the striker openly stating that the team was trying to sell Bale. They’ve had an open war of words, with Bale’s agent calling Zidane a “disgrace” after the manager said it would be best if Bale left the club. However, Bale, 30, could be stuck with Real Madrid, with the Chinese transfer window ending on Wednesday.
If the deal remains dead, the situation will probably grow even more awkward and tense. Bale didn’t play during a preseason friendly loss to Bayern Munich because he refused to dress for the game, according to Zidane. And yet ownership apparently wants these two to work things out, largely because of the financial factors. Bale and Zidane may have to figure out how to solve their contentious relationship, if that’s even possible.
