Gareth Bale is very close to joining Jiangsu Suning and the deal could be announced as early as this Saturday, according to a report from MARCA. Bale would sign a three-year deal for €22 million/year, per that same report.

The Welshman has been on his way out of Madrid for most of the summer even though his agent Jonathan Barnett publicly said time and time again that he wanted to stay. The reality is that coach Zinedine Zidane never wanted to keep him.

Marco Asensio’s knee injury could’ve changed Zidane’s mind given that Madrid now have an opening on the right wing. Still, Bale will not be that man and he will join the Chinese SuperLeague.

This is a very disappointing ending for Bale’s career in elite football, given that he’s still 30 years old. Apparently, Tottenham were interested in bringing him back but ultimately Bale just did not want to take a salary cut and will earn €8 million more per year than his current contract with Madrid.

He has always had the quality to contribute but his lack of ability to stay healthy and unwillingness to take on a role as a reserve forced Madrid’s hand and sealed his fate away from Real Madrid. Still, he was a key player in every trophy Los Blancos have won since he signed for the club back in 2013.