Real Madrid ready to move for Spurs' star Bale

Tottenham have been warned that
Real Madrid have the desire and
financial firepower to take Gareth
Bale to the Bernabeu this summer.
Bale's starring performance in the
3-2 win against West Ham on
Monday night has further
cemented his status among
Europe's very best players, with
Real, Paris St-Germain, Bayern
Munich, Barcelona and Manchester
City all now closely monitoring his
future.
Ramon Calderon, the former
president of Real Madrid who
retains links with the club, said
yesterday that the vast resources
available at the Bernabeu will
enable them to agree a deal.
"It's true we have spent a lot of
money in the last three or four
years but I think we are in a
position to pay the money they are
going to ask for," Calderon said.
"There is always a limit but Real
Madrid is in a very healthy
situation, economically speaking,
so it would be in the position to
sign him."
Madrid announced what they called
a "collaboration agreement" with
Tottenham following the purchase
of Luka Modric last season and
have already asked to be informed
if Bale does become available for
transfer. Tottenham would not
listen to offers below 50 million
pounds, with friends of the Wales
winger predicting that his long-
term future will still be defined by
his current club's ability to qualify
for the Champions League and
compete for silverware.
Calderon, who constructed the
world-record pounds 80?million
deal that took Cristiano Ronaldo
from Manchester United to Real,
accepts that Bale would not come
cheap.
"He is one of those players you
would always like to have in your
team. I'm sure it will be a high
amount of money because he is a
fantastic player. A lot of clubs
would like to have him," said
Calderon, who was replaced as
president in 2009 by Florentino
Perez.
Real's determination to buy Bale
this summer is likely to be heavily
influenced by the future of
Ronaldo, who will hold contract
talks in May. Despite Ronaldo
having just two years left to run on
his contract at the Bernabeu, Real
have yet to offer the former
Manchester United player a new
deal or begin negotiations with the
28-year-old's advisers.
Perez is due to stand for re-
election as president later this year
and, as well as needing to resolve
the managerial uncertainty at the
club, he will want to recruit a box-
office signing to ensure he is given
another four-year term. Bale is
known in Spain as the 'left-footed
Ronaldo'.
Reports in Madrid have also
suggested that Perez would be
prepared to sell Ronaldo to fund a
summer spending spree on Bale,
the Brazilian Neymar, David Silva
and Malaga winger Isco.
With Ronaldo having claimed
earlier this season that he was
unhappy at Real, speculation has
grown that the Portuguese is
prepared to leave the club this
summer or run down his contract
to depart as a free agent in 2015.
It has also emerged that Ronaldo
told holidaymakers in the
Dominican Republic in December
that he misses England and is keen
to play in the Premier League
again, raising the possibility, albeit
unlikely, of a return to Manchester
with United or City.
Paris St-Germain, backed by the
Qatari royal family, will also be
major players in this summer's
transfer window. Calderon also told
TalkSport yesterday that he
expected Jose Mourinho to move
from Madrid to Paris this summer,
although their transfer priorities
are currently a centre-back and a
new striker.
Tottenham remain adamant that
they have no interest in selling Bale
and are on course to qualify for
the Champions League for the
second time in four years.
Bale has previously said that he
would be open to playing abroad at
some stage in his career but did
extend his Tottenham contract last
summer until 2016. "It won't be
about money," said a friend. "If
Tottenham do get into the
Champions League and then show
they can compete with the
Manchester clubs, that is what will
be important to him."
Madrid expressed an interest in
Bale when they signed Modric last
summer and have now requested
that they be given the opportunity
to match any rival bids. Bale and
his advisers, however, must decide
whether his development would be
risked by moving abroad at such an
early stage in his career.
According to team-mate Scott
Parker, Bale's winning goal against
West Ham will have dealt Arsenal a
psychological blow in the race for
Champions League football.
"I've been in that position where
you're watching the scores come
up and it goes 'last-minute goal at
wherever' and you're praying it's
the other team," said Parker. "It is
deflating as a player on the
opposite end, and I'm sure the
Arsenal players are like that."
Tottenham can move seven points
clear of Arsenal on Sunday when
the two clubs meet at White Hart
Lane Parker says the players will be
motivated by losing a 10-point lead
over their rivals last season. "What
happened last year drives us," he
said. "We've worked really hard
this season to get where we've got,
and we can't afford to fall off it.
Of Bale, Parker added: "Words
can't really describe how well he's
playing at the moment."