Soccer

Zidane and Real target ‘best in Europe’ Bale

Spurs attacker could be the difference between winning and losing Champions League says former France great

Tottenham Hotspur’s Gareth Bale on the radar of Europe’s big spenders, accordng to Zinedine Zidane. Photograph: Phil Noble/Reuters
Tottenham Hotspur’s Gareth Bale on the radar of Europe’s big spenders, accordng to Zinedine Zidane. Photograph: Phil Noble/Reuters
Wed May 01 2013 - 13:26

Real Madrid director of football Zinedine Zidane has given the strongest indication yet that Gareth Bale (23) will be a transfer target for the Spanish giants in the summer.

The former France international, one of the greatest players ever, has described the Welshman, who was voted both PFA Player of the Year and Young Player of the Year, as the best in Europe this season and said there will be a handful of clubs ready to spend big for that talent when the transfer window opens in July.

“Tottenham could command €40 million, €50m, maybe even €60m for him,” he said. “It is a lot of money, but there are maybe three or four teams in the world that can pay that sort of transfer fee and it won’t put them off.

"A player like Bale can be the difference between a big club winning the league or Champions League. They would be getting the best player in Europe this season and he is at an age where he can still play at the top for another 10 years.

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“What I like about him is that he has this electric pace but also a big footballing brain to go with it. That is very rare.”

Spurs will make all the right noises about keeping their talisman but money like that would be hard to turn down and would go a long way to strenghtening other areas of their squad.

Internacional president Giovanni Luigi claims the club have re-opened transfer talks regarding striker Leandro Damiao. Spurs came close to bringing the Brazil international on board in January, but failed with a deadline day approach.

Officials at White Hart Lane have continued to monitor Damiao since that point. Luigi says further discussions have been held, ahead of the summer window, and he has hinted that the 23-year-old forward will be plying his trade in the Premier League next season - rather than in his homeland or in Serie A.

"If a club want a player," he told Tutto Mercato, "they must talk to the president of the club at which that particular player plays, and not just deal with the agent - that is not correct behaviour. Recently we talked with Tottenham, Leandro is very likely to play games in England in the coming year. On the other hand, we can exclude Napoli. "