Former chief involved in Bale’s Real Madrid transfer claims they attempted to tailor deal to favor Cristiano Ronaldo
Darren Eales has claimed that Real Madrid wanted to protect Cristiano Ronaldo during their signing of Gareth Bale. Tottenham Hotspur's former Director Of Football Administration revealed that Los Blancos wanted the Portuguese star to remain the most expensive player in the world.
The Spanish giants are said to have cheated the press on the deal by repeatedly claiming that it was not a world record.
Speaking to talkSPORT, Eales stated that Real Madrid did not want Ronaldo to feel outdone by Bale and tried their best to pay less than what they did to get the Portuguese star from Manchester United. He went on to claim that Los Blancos were unable to agree a deal below the world record and had to pay £85.3 million – £5.3 million more than they paid to sign the current Al Nassr star.
Eales said:
“It was an interesting one. When it got to that stage and he was committed it was about how do we get the maximum value possible, but it was one of the most complicated deals that I’ve ever dealt with. We were dealing with Real Madrid, who had Cristiano Ronaldo."
He added:
"And they wanted to get it so that Ronaldo was still the most expensive player and they were paying more, so there was a lot of negotiation about how they were going to spin it at their end because they were protecting Ronaldo. But we got there in the end – at that stage, we just want to maximize the deal obviously it was a world record transfer at the time that it took place."
Gareth Bale played 258 matches for Real Madrid and scored 106 goals during his time at the club. He retired from football after finishing his career with MLS outfit Los Angeles FC
Gareth Bales claims Cristiano Ronaldo would be angry if he didn't score in a 5-0 win
Bale played 157 matches with Cristiano Ronaldo at Real Madrid when the duo led the club's attack along with Karim Benzema. They combined for 41 goals for the Spanish side before the Portuguese star left for Juventus.
Speaking on Martin Borgmeier's YouTube channel, Bale revealed that Ronaldo would be furious in the dressing room if the side won 5-0 but he failed to get on the scoresheet. He said:
"He was actually okay. He had his moments. For example, if we win 5-0 and he didn't score, he comes in and throws his boots like he's angry. It's like your team winning in the Ryder Cup but you didn't get a point so you are angry."
Cristiano Ronaldo left for Juventus in 2018 before moving back to Manchester United in 2021. He is now plying his trade for Al Nassr and has scored 50 goals for the Saudi Arabian club in his first year in the Middle East.