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Tottenham Hotspur are exploring the possibility of re-signing former star Gareth Bale from Real Madrid this summer, according to Football Insider.

What’s the word?

Bale has continually been linked with a fairytale return to north London after leaving the club in 2013, in a then-world record £85million deal.

He is reported to earn £350,000-per-week in Madrid, however, and any transfer fee would surely break the £42m record that Spurs set when they acquired Davinson Sanchez from Ajax.

Football Insider, then, report that chairman Daniel Levy will only do a deal for Bale, who is valued at £63m by Transfermarkt, if Real are willing to discuss terms relating to a reduced fee, while the Wales international would also have to take a significant pay cut.

The Spanish club are said to be interested in signing Christian Eriksen this summer and one possibility listed is a part-exchange deal, though Levy is said to value the Dane at triple Bale’s worth.

A loan deal is another option, with the 29-year-old seemingly set to depart the Santiago Bernabeu; he has won four Champions League titles in the Spanish capital but has been repeatedly jeered by his own fans in recent months.

Is a pipe dream becoming reality?

If Real are desperate enough, we could see another Levy masterclass.

It seems likely that Bale is on his way out but Manchester United have long been touted as the likeliest suitor. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side have missed out on the Champions League this season, though, and it remains to be seen if they will have any chance of convincing Bale to make the move to Old Trafford.

Instead, Spurs could become Real’s unlikely saviours.

A loan deal would work for everyone; Spurs lure back a previous hero, add some genuine stardust to a team that has reached the Champions League final and rake in the merchandising income; Real remove the albatross from around their neck and are able to reinvest at least a portion of his gargantuan wages.

It may have to wait until deadline day – Real would surely prefer to hold out for a fee for as long as possible – but what a deal it would be.