Some good news and bad news from Spain for Manchester United fans.
First, the good: the likelihood of seeing Gareth Bale - who United tried to poach in 2013 - tearing down the flanks of Old Trafford next season appears stronger than ever. We’re not basing this on tales of unhappy WAGs or house-hunting expeditions in Cheshire, but a pattern of stories emerging from Real Madrid’s favorite transfer mouthpiece, El Confidencial.
Just as happened before the sale of Mezut Ozil and Angel di Maria, Florentino Perez’s media outlet of choice is softening public opinion for a Bale sale this summer. On Christmas Eve, El Confidencial ran a story on Madrid’s interest in Borussia Dortmund's Marco Reus and Man United’s pursuit of Bale, simply headlined: “Sell Bale for 153m and sign Reus for 25m? Where do I sign?”. In addition to details on the Reus transfer, the article went on to highlight Bale's dispensability.
Next, following Madrid’s 2-1 loss to Valencia at the start of the year – a defeat that broke their 22-game winning streak – El Confidencial singled out Bale’s failure to pass to Ronaldo for especially harsh criticism, carrying his photo on the back page and painting the former Spurs winger as a selfish player. A week later, when Bale made a similar “selfish” run against Espanyol (a game in which he scored a stunning freekick), this was the reaction at the Bernabau:
Finally, just a few days ago El Confidential carried another story on Reus, stating that Madrid officials were in Dortmund shortly after Christmas to tie up the deal, and again highlighted how it would be difficult for Real to resist the “onslaught” from Man United for Bale, especially given the extra competition for places.
While this might simply sound like more transfer BS, El Confidencial has a strong track record in getting Real Madrid transfer news right, not least because they’re being fed stories straight from the Bernabau. Remember, Spanish club presidents like Florentino Perez are elected by the club's members, and as such each and every transfer – especially the departure of a player so expensively acquired – has to be nurtured and positioned within the public domain. What Perez and El Confidential are doing with Bale is exactly what happened with Ozil and di Maria before him.
Now the bad news for United fans: any move for Bale will likely see David de Gea heading in the opposite direction. Madrid’s intentions regarding de Gea are well documented, and according to reports from the British press in the last day or so, Edward Woodward is prepared to part with the Spaniard in order to snaffle Bale, especially in light of de Gea's dwindling contract (up in 18 months' time) and Victor Valdes' acquisition last week. The Spanish shot-stopper PLUS £40m-£50m is the reported fee.
Photo: TeleFootball | Twitter
Which strikes The18 as one step forward, two steps back for United. While any team could use a Bale, parting with the man who’s single-handedly dragged an abject defence through countless Premier League fixtures would be a blow. Just consider these stats for a second:
- Only three Premier League goalkeepers (Brad Guzan, Ben Foster and Hugo Lloris) have made more saves inside the penalty area than David de Gea so far this season.
- Only two have made more saves inside the six-yard box than de Gea (Rob Green and Foster).
- Man United have conceded 15 more shots on goal than Man City, 18 more than Chelsea, 22 more than Arsenal and 33 more than Southampton in 22 Premier League games
So who's it to be, United fans? A man capable of single-handedly scaring the sh*t out of opposing defences, or the man who this season is responsible for repelling some of the finest attacking units world football has to offer (and £40m)? Pick one, because apparently you can't have both.
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