Man Utd could seal bargain £18.5m deal as Solskjaer prepares swoop for 31y/o star

Manchester United are ready to move for Gareth Bale and could sign the Real Madrid winger in a bargain £18.5m deal this summer, according to The Sun.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has endured a frustrating transfer window so far as he’s only managed to sign midfielder Donny van de Beek from Ajax having struggled to secure deals for his other key transfer targets.

The Norwegian boss is keen to strengthen his attacking options for the new season and United have been locked in talks to sign Jadon Sancho in recent months but have been unable to agree terms with Borussia Dortmund.

The Sun says Man Utd are now looking at alternative targets after becoming frustrated by the lack of progress in their pursuit of Sancho and Bale has now emerged as a shock candidate.

According to the newspaper report, Manchester United are ready to offer Bale a short-term deal that would see them sign him on an initial season long loan from Madrid with the option to extend his stay for a further year.

The Sun suggests that Real Madrid may push for a permanent deal worth around £18.5m but United are now exploring all options as they prepare to turn their attention to Bale during the closing weeks of the window.

The 31-year-old still has two years left on his £650,000-a-week contract at the Bernabeu and the report says he’ll need to take a pay cut in order to join United while Madrid could also pay a percentage of the winger’s salary.

Signing Bale would go against Solskjaer’s usual policy of buying hungry young players who he can improve but The Sun says he’s open to the idea of buying a proven talent like the Welshman if needed.

Bale’s career has stalled at Madrid but he’s still a world class attacker who has provided 105 goals and 68 assists in his 251 appearances for the La Liga outfit to help them win a whole host of trophies including 4 Champions League’s.

That kind of experience could be invaluable for Solskjaer as he has a very young attack and Bale could offer help to the likes of Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial, Mason Greenwood and Dan James if he ends up moving to Old Trafford.

We’ll have to wait and see how things progress but signing Bale as a stop-gap for £18.5m seems like a decent bit of business if Manchester United cannot get a deal agreed with Dortmund for Sancho this summer.