Real Madrid will only let Bale leave for €222m

Zinedine Zidane's resignation as Real Madrid coach managed to deactivate the alarms which were sounding at the Santiago Bernabeu offices following the Champions League final. Gareth Bale was the first person to declare he might leave following the victory, one where he had a starring role, but Real Madrid are now confident they will be able to keep Bale at the club. They have no intention of selling him this summer. 

As revealed by Spanish newspaper 'ABC', Real Madrid won't consider selling the Welsh winger for anything less than €222m. That figure might sound familiar and it's because it's what PSG paid Barcelona for Neymar last summer. Real Madrid are aware that no club could afford the €1,000m buyout clause in Bale's contract but if the Welshman is to leave it would have to be for a record fee.

first name on the team sheet

Bale was deeply impacted by Zidane's decision to not to start him more often in his final few months at the club. The relationship between the two deteriorated considerably and this explains Bale's outburst at the end of the match in Kiev. The player was seriously considering forcing a move away from Madrid when Zidane resigned. Now the situation has changed and Florentino Perez, Real Madrid's president, won't consider selling a player he decided to spend €101m on five years ago.

The only way Bale could still leave Real Madrid is if they manage to sign Neymar in the next few months. That is a deal which is anything but easy and every day looks more complicated to get over the line. If Neymar did join however, Bale would lose his 'untouchable' tag and Perez wouldn't mind selling him.