Tottenham Hotspur are prepared to sell Gareth Bale to Real Madrid and will tell the Spanish club the prospect of a deal would increase if the striker Alvaro Morata were included as a makeweight.
Real have so far bid a world record €100 million in straight cash for Bale, which has not been enough to sway Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy, and they have indicated a readiness to offer players as further sweeteners.
They have put forward the left back Fabio Coentrao and the winger Angel di Maria, but Tottenham maintain the deal will be on their terms, meaning they choose any makeweights and the one that they want is Morata.
Given the 20-year-old is the most highly rated young player at the Bernabeu, particularly after he secured the Golden Boot as Spain won the European Under-21 Championship this summer, it effectively means the package Tottenham are seeking is worth more than €100 million.
Real, who have waged an increasingly aggressive campaign to sign Bale during this transfer window, may consider Tottenham's willingness to negotiate, at last, as a positive sign. On the other hand, they will be loth to lose Morata, especially as he has been earmarked by the coach, Carlo Ancelotti, for a more prominent role.
Challenge
Real's decision to sell Gonzalo Higuain to Napoli for €37 million was motivated in part by the feeling that Morata was ready to challenge Karim Benzema for a place in the starting XI.
Real believe Morata could be Spain’s future number nine and their appreciation of him has been reflected in their efforts to secure him to a long-term deal with an enormous buy-out clause.
Morata’s contract expires in 2015.
It must be noted that swap or part-exchange deals at the highest level are extremely rare, because of their complexity. The reasons include the inevitable argument over the value of the makeweight, his personal terms and desire to make the move.
Levy would want any makeweight to come over and above the €100 million fee for Bale whereas Real would decrease the cash sum according to the player involved.
Tottenham continue to press on with their other business and they are poised to break their transfer record for the second time this summer with the €30 million signing of Roberto Soldado from Valencia.
Tottenham's technical director, Franco Baldini, has spent time in Valencia to broker the deal, which will end Andre Villas-Boas's search for a centre forward.
'All but done'
The Valencia president, Amadeo Salvo, said yesterday the transfer was all but done.
“The deal with Tottenham has been completed,” he said. “A problem with Soldado’s agents has come up and the player will not leave the club until a solution has been found.”
Tottenham are looking forward to welcoming the 28-year-old Spain international, who scored 30 goals in 46 appearances last season.
Villas-Boas has allowed Steven Caulker to move to Cardiff City for €10 million, which becomes a record transfer for the Welsh club, overtaking the €9.7 million they recently paid for Denmark striker Andreas Cornelius from FC Copenhagen.
The move raised eyebrows in some quarters as Caulker had been touted as the future for Tottenham.
Moreover, with the long-term injury casualty Younes Kaboul still to feature in pre-season, Jan Vertonghen out with ankle damage and William Gallas released, Villas-Boas now has only one fit, senior centre half in Michael Dawson.
Tottenham are pushing to sign the 23-year-old Romania and Steaua Bucharest central defender Vlad Chiriches, although it has been reported that the club’s owner, Gigi Becali, who is in jail, is unhappy for the deal to proceed.
Tottenham have also signed the winger Nacer Chadli from Twente for €8 million but Bale’s future continues to dominate.
The 24-year-old, who is determined to be granted his dream move to Real, reported to the Tottenham training ground yesterday morning. But he did not train with the first-team group, as he felt the minor gluteal muscle injury that has hampered him for the past two weeks.
Guardian Service
