Tottenham Hotspur head coach Andre Villas-Boas has confirmed that the
club are in talks with Gareth Bale and his agent about a new deal.
Bale’s future has been the subject of increasing speculation this
summer, with Real Madrid courting him and Manchester United also
reportedly weighing up a bid, but Villas-Boas reiterated his belief that
the winger would stay at White Hart Lane. .
The Spurs boss said White Hart Lane officials were in talks about
improving the current terms on the PFA Player of the Year’s contract,
which he signed last summer.
"There were contacts last year between the club and his agent,"
Villas-Boas told a press conference on the club’s pre-season tour. "And
there are still ongoing contacts between club and agent.
"The player renewed his contract last year by the beginning of the
season, if you remember, and it's something that is being dealt with by
the chairman and with the agent. Talks are ongoing, but that doesn't
mean there is an agreement."
When asked whether he was confident that agreement would be reached,
Villas-Boas said: "At the moment, we are confident. The player is under
contract, a good contract at Tottenham.
"It's something we are speaking about, but we don't have any further developments."
Despite Villas-Boas' latest interjection, Spanish newspaper
Marca continues to speculate about Bale's potential move to Real Madrid,
claiming on Friday that a €60 million had been tabled by
Los Blancos.
The Madrid-based sports daily has long been noted for its close links
with Real and these latest reports are accompanied by comments that
Marca
claims were made by Bale in a recent meeting with Spurs chairman Daniel
Levy, in which he reportedly stated his desire to move to the Bernabeu.
Meanwhile, Villas-Boas said Spurs are still interested in signing
Valencia striker Roberto Soldado, despite director of football Franco
Baldini having so far failed to agree a fee with the Spanish club.
"There is interest in the player, no matter what happened in the last
couple of days," the Spurs boss said. "He is a quality player, and he
has done well at Valencia for the last few seasons.
"He has had a good education from the Real Madrid school and he is a player we are interested in adding."
Soldado, who joined Valencia from Getafe in 2010, scored 24 goals in the Primera Division last season.
