If the summer had gone differently, Gareth Bale might have been on a plane to Switzerland on Monday to play for Manchester United against Young Boys.
He could have been readying himself for a Champions League debut at the Allianz Arena for Bayern Munich against Ajax.
Or even, as Tottenham fans might have hoped, back at his old club and back to the San Siro, the scene of that spellbinding breakthrough performance in 2010.
Spurs never had the financial clout, nor Bale any inclination, to engineer a return to London. He was never much fussed about Bayern or United either, despite depositing the word “honoured” in Bild, when asked about being linked with the German champions, and despite United making it clear to Bale’s representatives they should be notified if and when he decided to leave.
That scenario never looked more likely than on May 26. Bale was left out of the Champions League final team to face Liverpool, came off the bench to score with an astonishing bicycle kick, and then declared during the celebrations he would be considering his future.
“I need to be playing week-in, week-out,” Bale said.
There were times last season, most notably after he was hauled off at half-time against Paris Saint-Germain, when Bale and Zinedine Zidane were not on speaking terms. Strong form and a consistent run of games towards the end of the campaign saw relations thaw but the snub in Kiev was a final kick in the teeth. Even after the final whistle, when the cameras swarmed around the game’s star player, Zidane kept his distance.
