Gareth Bale's agent has denied claims that Tottenham were close to signing the Real Madrid star on Deadline Day - and says a return to the club is unlikely to ever happen.
Reports on Friday morning suggested that Tottenham were moving to bring the Welsh superstar back to North London - seven years after his £85million switch to the Santiago Bernabeu.
Bale and Madrid boss Zinedine Zidane endured a breakdown in their relationship last summer, and the four-time Champions League winner had looked set to leave the Spanish capital.
However Jonathan Barnett has said Spurs never made an official approach last month, though he refused to deny reports that Tottenham chief Daniel Levy travelled to Spain to hold talks with Madrid supremo Florentino Perez.
When asked if Tottenham approached Bale over a move in January, Barnett told TalkSport: “No.
"[Levy] may have [visited Madrid], it’s not for me to say whether he did or didn’t. Gareth is very happy over there.
“And let’s be realistic: for most clubs he is out of their league, financially.
“It is all well and good to say, ‘give up that money and go and play somewhere else’, but it is not all about money. It is about his lifestyle and his children, who have grown up in Madrid.”
Bale is under contract until June 2022 on a mega deal worth over £600,000-a-week.
And his representative has suggested that a return to Tottenham is unlikely given his current salary demands.
“I don’t think so, no,” added Barnett. “He’s in a very fortunate position.
“When his contract is up hopefully he will sit down with me and his family and decide what he wants to do.”
