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Manchester United can sign Gareth Bale for as little as €20 million (£18.5 million) this summer, as Real Madrid are desperate to get the Welshman off their books.
The sticking point remains his salary which is €15 million net a season, a figure that no club is prepared to pay right now. However, Real are now considering paying off one year of the two years he has left on his current contract at the Bernabeu, if it makes it easier for him to find a new club.
United have long been admirers of Bale and may be tempted to the Welshman as an alternative to Jadon Sancho, as their chances of striking a deal for the English winger with Borussia Dortmund look increasingly remote.
Bale and Real manager Zinedine Zidane do not see eye-to-eye, with the Frenchman making it abundantly clear that the 31-year old, who remains the highest paid player at the club, does not form part of his long-term plans.
Andy is an exiled English football fan living in Cyprus. He loves all sports but football is his abiding passion, and he still has dreams every now and then about scoring the winning goal in a Wembley Cup Final, even though his playing days are long gone. He follows most major leagues, across Europe at least, and has a favoured team in each. When he’s not watching, listening, reading or downloading podcasts about football, he spend his time worrying about his beloved Arsenal.