FOOTBALL UPDATE

Bale has been a long-time target for United but is believed to have turned down moves to Old Trafford twice before. It had been thought, however, that Jose Mourinho was prepared to end his interest in the Wales star, due to the imminent arrival of Alexis Sanchez from Arsenal. Don Balon claims that the 29-year-old has told Real that he will be joining Sanchez at Old Trafford, although whether that will be in January or the summer is unclear at this stage.  The former Tottenham attacker has struggled for injuries over the past 12 months and has been rumoured to be part of a dramatic shake-up of the playing and coaching staff at The Bernabeu. Real president Florentino Perez is said to be ready to wield the axe after a disastrous La Liga title defence, with boss Zinedine Zidane and some of the clubs highest profile stars, including top man Cristiano Ronaldo, set to be moved on.  The report goes on to state that Bale has been in secret talks with United over the la...

After spending considerably less money in recruiting players, several clubs opt to sell prized assets in order to earn a handsome profit.  Here are the 10 biggest mark-ups in European football.  10) Everton (2017) - ROMELU LUKAKU - Mark up: £40m Chelsea – Everton £28m (2014), Everton – Manchester United £75m (2017) 9) Juventus (2001) - ZINEDINE ZIDANE - Mark up: £45m Bordeaux – Juventus £3m (1996), Juventus – Real Madrid £48m (2001)   8) Liverpool (2014) - LUIS SUAREZ - Mark up: £52.2m  Ajax – Liverpool £22.8m (2011), Liverpool – Barcelona £75m (2014)   7) Southampton (2018) - VIRGIL VAN DIJK - Mark up: £62m Celtic – Southampton £13m (2015), Southampton – Liverpool £75m (2018) 6) Manchester United (2009) - CRISTIANO RONALDO - Mark-up: £63m  Sporting Lisbon – Manchester United £17m (2003), Manchester United – Real Madrid £80m (2009) 5) Tottenham (2013) - GARETH BALE - Mark-up: £76m Southampton – ...

Gareth Bale arguably should have done better early on as he attacked Marcelo’s cross from the left, before Cristiano Ronaldo saw a low effort easily saved by Ruben Blanco in the home goal.  At the other end, Iago Aspas got caught in two minds when played in on the left and opted to look for a pass that wasn’t on, rather than go himself. Aspas went even closer with 13 minutes gone as he side-footed Hugo Mallo’s cross from the right against the near postafter escaping the attentions of Real’s back-line. Both sides looked at their most dangerous on the counter at this point, with Daniel Wass wasting a good chance after being teed up by Maxi Gomez, before Casemiro forced Ruben into a save with a long range strike. What followed can only be described as ‘five minutes of madness’ as Celta took the lead, only to relinquish it in the blink of an eye. First, Celta broke the deadlock thanks to a fine goal from Daniel Wass. The Dane was left all...