Bale's family ask him not to go to China Real Madrid Negotiations right now are put on ice

Everything seemed set for Gareth Bale to complete his move to Jiangsu Suning, which would have seen him sign a three-year deal worth 22 million euros net a year, but the player himself has asked for a few days to think things over before sealing his departure from the Estadio Santiago Bernabeu.

Bale's family are not in favour of a move to China, despite the eye-watering sum that he would be paid, and they have asked the forward's representatives to look for alternatives in Europe before definitively saying yes to Jiangsu Suning's offer.

The 30-year-old has until July 31 to give an answer to the Chinese side, with his agent, Jonathan Barnett, having reached an agreement with the club's hierarchy last Friday.

Real Madrid are giving Bale the chance to decide his own future, and they would actually prefer that he joins a club in Europe so that they receive a transfer fee, rather than allow him to go to China for free.

Right now, there are three days until the transfer window closes in China and 11 until it does in the Premier League; until then, anything could happen. What hasn't changed is Zinedine Zidane's stance: he wants Bale to leave as soon as possible.