How Would Tottenham Hotspur's Gareth Bale Fit in at Chelsea?

Forget Neymar's move to Barcelona or even the rumors surrounding Cristiano Ronaldo's potential return to Manchester United, per the Daily Mail. The biggest transfer story this summer is going to be Tottenham Hotspur's Gareth Bale.

May hasn't even ended and we're hearing tales in the Guardian of a potential move to Real Madrid, but one story that could make Chelsea fans sit up and take notice is in the the Mirror.

The British red top suggests Spurs are losing the battle to retain the Welshman's services, but Real are going to have to fight equally as hard to lure him to the Bernabeu with Manchester United, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea all apparently interested in meeting his £80 million valuation.

And why wouldn't they be? After all, there aren't many clubs in world football that have the clout to challenge the likes of Real in the transfer market, so it would be folly not to pursue a player with Bale's talent if he is indeed available.

Playing fantasy football for a moment, imagine Chelsea beat the competition to Bale's signature. What next? How would the Welshman fit into the Blues' attacking lineup?

Under Roberto Di Matteo and Rafa Benitez last term, Chelsea adhered to the current trend of playing a 4-2-3-1 formation. Well, with Bale in the team, that would be the first thing to go.

Chelsea would have an embarrassment of riches in advanced positions. Vying for a starting berth along Bale would be Juan Mata, Eden Hazard, Oscar, Victor Moses and Germany's Andre Schurrle, who is expected to join the Blues in the coming days according to the Guardian.

So how to accommodate them? Our diagram below is one option.

Mata is by far Chelsea's finest player—as two successive Player of the Year awards show—so the Welshman's inclusion in the team would need to work around the Spaniard's talents.

Playing Bale further forward with Mata would give him license to cause damage in the final third, an area where he proved so devastating in 2012-13 for Spurs, while allowing his new teammate to flourish also.

Further back, Hazard would provide excellent creativity from a deeper position than we saw in his debut campaign at Chelsea, while Schurrle would give a similar balance on the right, surging forward to support those ahead of him.

Whether it be John Mikel Obi or another defensive midfielder, Chelsea would need a man capable of shoring things up, although his attributes in breaking up opposition play will be just as vital as what that attacking quartet would bring.

Naysayers will no doubt scoff at the thought, and they would have their reasons. It looks exciting on paper, but with this amount of attacking talent, Chelsea would open themselves up to being found out defensively by any coach with a smidgen of tactical acumen.

Whether it's Jose Mourinho or not, signing Bale would throw the new Chelsea boss a considerable curve ball in how to utilize so much attacking talent. Does he sacrifice a defender? Remove a striker altogether? Commit to just a trio of attacking midfielders behind the front man, regardless of their price tag and reputation?

If we're honest, it's a question that's unlikely to be put to anyone at the Blues in the near future, but what's your opinion? Let us know in the comments section below or on Twitter @garryhayes