Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger claims Real Madrid’s bid to sign Gareth Bale from Tottenham for around 85 million pounds ($A145 million) would make a mockery of UEFA’s Financial Fair Play rules.
Real are reported to be willing to pay a world record fee, shattering the previous 80 million pounds ($A136 million) mark the Spanish giants paid for Cristiano Ronaldo in 2009, to lure Wales winger Bale from White Hart Lane.
But Wenger feels such a huge outlay would go completely against the new regulations from European football’s governing body, which are aimed at making sure all clubs balance the books, while also curtailing the massive spending of teams like Manchester City and Paris Saint German who have been taken over by wealthy Middle East-based owners.
“It makes a joke of it. It’s quite amazing that in the year where the Financial Fair Play comes in, the football world has gone completely crazy,” Wenger said on Friday.
“You wonder what kind of impact and effect it has on the football world. It looks like it has made everybody worse than before.”
If Bale does leave Tottenham, it would be something of a boost for Arsenal, who were in direct competition with their north London rivals for a place in the Champions League last season.
But Wenger insists he would not like to see Bale quit the Premier League.
“It is never good to lose a big player,” he added.
“He is a British player and I believe it is important that the Premier League keeps the best players.”