Manchester United Transfer News: Gareth Bale Deal Rumoured to Cost £335M

Manchester United will reportedly need to part with £335 million if they want to sign Gareth Bale from Real Madrid, which has Jose Mourinho concerned the club's board won't agree to such an expensive deal.

The Mirror's John Cross wrote that Real are "making it clear" they want £200 million for Bale after his two-goal heroics in Saturday's UEFA Champions League final, matching the world-record fee paid for Neymar.

Signing the Wales international on a four-year deal—if he were to keep his current £650,000-per-week wages—would mean paying an additional £135 million in salary and making him the best-paid player in the Premier League.

Bale has endured an up-and-down season under Zinedine Zidane but came off the bench to net a game-winning brace in Real's 3-1 win over Liverpool in Kiev, Ukraine.

Sky Sports News have since reported his position at the club is to be assessed:

The £650,000 Bale earns per week at Real falls to £350,000 per week after tax, the Guardian's Ed Aarons reported when he signed the deal in October 2016. Alexis Sanchez' £350,000-per-week earnings make him the current best-paid player in England's top flight, per Goal's Kris Voakes.

According to Cross, Mourinho has told friends he doubts United's controlling figures will pay the necessary sums for Bale, who turns 29 in July and has been hampered by injuries in recent seasons.

The United manager is said to be "desperate" to get his hands on the former Tottenham Hotspur winger, and Bale hinted after his star display against Liverpool that he wanted to be playing more regularly:

The Red Devils added one star wide-man to their ranks with Sanchez arriving from Arsenal in January, but Bale's introduction would further limit any chances for the likes of Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial.

Nevertheless, commentator Ian Darke described the Welshman as a positive potential addition to Mourinho's side, although he noted a Premier League rival possessed a possible edge in the transfer race:

Mourinho left the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu three months before Bale joined Los Blancos in the summer of 2013, but he could get an opportunity to mentor him in England.

Despite the previous links Spurs have with the player, BBC Sport's Simon Stone effectively ruled the north Londoners out due to the finances involved:

United may have to match the £200 million Paris Saint-Germain paid for Neymar in order to sign Bale, which is questionable given the Brazilian was 25 when he left Barcelona and is a more valuable, marketable asset.

Mourinho's alleged fears regarding the board's backing for a potential deal are therefore well-founded, and one has to ask whether United could find better ways to spend such a hefty figure this summer.