Real Madrid would still prefer to sell Gareth Bale in the summer despite claims by his agent Jonathan Barnett that a transfer is “unlikely”.

Madrid accept that the chances of finding a buyer for the forward this month are remote and are also not confident that a club will come in for the 30-year-old at the end of the season and be prepared to pay a fee.

Bale’s contract at the Bernabéu runs until 2022 and his most likely destination, should he leave before then, still remains China. The Wales international was close to agreeing a lucrative deal last year until Madrid pulled out at the last minute because they decided they wanted a transfer fee to be paid. It may be that, if they are determined Bale should go, they have to accept allowing him to leave for free given the extremely high costs of his contract.

In comments to ESPN, Barnett ruled out Bale going to Major League Soccer in the United States and said his client would be “going nowhere” in January and was “very unlikely” to leave Madrid in the summer. It may be that Bale is waiting to see whether Real coach Zinedine Zidane remains.