Tottenham head coach Mauricio Pochettino would welcome Gareth Bale back at White Hart Lane if reports of a first option clause prove to be true.
Documents released by the Football Leaks website appear to show that Madrid paid €101 million to take Bale from Spurs in 2013 and also that the Premier League club have a clause to match any offers received for him.
Bale is enjoying an impressive campaign at Madrid despite Rafael Benitez s sacking in January and the ongoing calf injury that sees him sidelined from Zinedine Zidane s plans.
But Pochettino was open to the possibility of Bale returning, telling reporters with a smile: I don t know – it s about rumour.
If we have the full option to sign him then why not?
He s a great player and he s a player who can improve our squad. This is the type of profile we [try to] find.
Fourth-placed Spurs travel to near-neighbours Crystal Palace on Saturday buoyed by their FA Cup third-round replay win over Leicester City on Wednesday.
Emmanuel Adebayor whose Spurs contract was mutually terminated in September has been linked with Palace, whose manager Alan Pardew confirmed he was a target in the current window.
But Pochettino refused to comment on the striker, adding: It s not my problem.
I think that I cannot give an opinion about Adebayor or Crystal Palace.
I respect him and Crystal Palace and what is happening at different clubs is not my problem.
