Real Madrid are ready to listen to offers for the services of Gareth Bale and Eden Hazard this summer, according to Sky Sports.
This situation is nothing new when it comes to Bale. Real have reportedly been trying to get the Welshman off their wage bill for a long time. He was close to moving to China in 2019, the same summer when Hazard arrived, but Real went back on their word and refused to rescind his contract.
The relationship between the 31-year-old winger and head coach Zinedine Zidane has been less than friendly for a long time now. Bale spent 2020-21 on loan at Tottenham Hotspur, agreeing to a temporary return to North London in search of game time, and recent reports suggested he was keen to fight for his place at the Santiago Bernabeu in what would be the final season of his contract. However, it seems they aren’t as keen on the idea in Madrid, and they intend to try and get at least some money for him, rather than lose him for free in 2022.
But compared Hazard, Bale’s time in Madrid seems like great success. The Belgian arrived from Chelsea for a reported fee of €120 million, and in the two years he’s been in the Spanish capital, he managed no more that five goals and eight assists in 43 appearances in all competitions.
Injury after injury hampered his efforts to establish himself as a regular member of Zidane’s team, and he angered the Real supporters recently by congratulating the players of his former club on beating Real in the Champions League semifinals a bit too enthusiastically.
Real remain determined to bring in both Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland in the near future, and any funds they manage to raise through potential sales of Bale and/or Hazard would be channeled towards that goal.
