Are Real Madrid set to Bale on Welsh superstar?

Gareth Bale may have joined Real Madrid to much fanfare back in 2013 with his signature placing him the esteemed collection of second generation Galacticos but could his time in the Spanish capital be set to come to an end over the course of the next few weeks.

The former Tottenham player has had without question had a glittering stint at the Santiago Bernabeu with (at the time of writing) two Champions League titles to his name to go alongside a newly won La Liga winners medal and a Copa Del Rey success in 2014 – a game memorable for Bale’s late winner which saw him almost run the length of the pitch before scoring.

But he also been a victim to a catalogue of injuries, especially this season as a long term ankle injury puts his participation in tonight’s Champions League final at risk. With those injury concerns in mind it is believed the Real Madrid hierarchy are considering on cashing in on the 27 year old.

It is no secret that Los Blancos have been courting the signature of Chelsea’s Eden Hazard for a while now and if that was a move that does end up coming to fruition then it would make an already congested attack line further more bloated.

Therefore should they get their number one target and it is very rare that they do not get their man then they are going to have to balance the squad by showing at least one of their star men the Bernabeu exit door and as of right now it seems as if Bale is the prime candidate to be told adios by the Spanish giants.

Not only has the potential of new signings by Real hastened the departure of Bale but there is also the further prominence of Isco during the past few months. It has been his impressive form that has played a huge part in delivering a first La Liga title since 2012 and their return to a Champions League final.

Isco has often been linked with a move away from Real with a number of Premier League clubs ready to acquire his services but due to his stellar end of season performances he has pushed ahead of Bale and is now seen as one of the players that Zinedine Zidane will want to keep hold of.

Real Madrid paid a reported transfer value at figures between €91 million and €100 million back in 2013 and they will want to recoup almost all of that original outlay, with that being the case there would be only be a very select few clubs who could match these financial demands.

One of those clubs in the small cabal would be Manchester United, they have money to burn and with a return to the Champions League secured they look an even more attractive proposition to any potential signings over the course of this transfer window.

In the past few days they have supposedly cooled their interest in Atletico Madrid’s Antoine Griezmann and now their attention is set to move across the Spanish capital to Real and that of Gareth Bale. It is believed that talks between two of Europe’s biggest clubs are to take place with a view to bringing the Welsh captain to Manchester.

With Real wanting a maximum return on their investment it could mean another world record expenditure by Jose Mourinho this summer but there could be one way to sweeten a potential deal, that could come in the form of using United goalkeeper David De Gea as a form of leverage.

It is very rare that you see swap deals take place in this day and age but both clubs have a player that the other one wants, so a bid of £60m plus the Spanish international ‘keeper could set the wheels in motion. The question that Mourinho would have to ask is whether De Gea is worth sacrificing for Bale.

Bale is not a certainity to start this evening against Juventus and whatever minutes he gets in Cardiff could very well end up being his last for the club. It has been an impressive four season stint for the former Southampton youngster but when you are a Galactico you must be accept that you only have a certain time frame at the club