Inter said to be preparing €45m bid for Bale

SOCCER:INTERNAZIONALE WILL confirm Gareth Bale's growing reputation as the most sought-after player in world football with a €46 million bid in the summer, the most that has ever been offered for a player of his age and experience.

The move, if successful, would shatter the transfer record for a British player and propel Bale to an elite within the game of which perhaps only Wayne Rooney, of British home-produced contemporaries, could count himself.

That sum could rise, as the Italian champions’ move is expected to spark an immediate bidding war with Real Madrid, where Jose Mourinho has also made the Tottenham Hotspur winger his principal target.

However, Inter chief executive Ernesto Paolillo denied the reports. “It is incorrect,” he said in a telephone interview. “It’s not true.”

Such a move would place Bale, still only 21, among a gilded elite of expensive footballers. Only four players have moved for more – Ronaldo (Manchester United to Real for €92 million), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (Inter to Barcelona for €65 million), Kaka (Milan to Real for €65 million) and Zinedine Zidane (Juventus to Real for €48 million) – and all had made significantly more impact on the European stage than Bale, who 12 months ago was just cementing his place in the Tottenham first XI.

The transfer record for a British player remains the €34 million Manchester United paid Leeds United for Rio Ferdinand in 2002.

Massimo Moratti, the Inter president, has placed Bale at the top of his wish-list after being smitten by the manner in which he performed against his team at the Champions League group stage. Bale scored a hat-trick in Tottenham’s 4-3 defeat at San Siro, a display that had Moratti purring, and he was also outstanding in the White Hart Lane return, which his team won 3-1.

Both games were notable for Bale’s dismantling of Maicon, the Brazil right-back previously considered by many the world’s strongest in his position.

Real, meanwhile, made inquiries about Bale last summer and have monitored him closely this season. Mourinho admires him greatly, while it is often said Real is the one club players find impossible to turn down. They continue to wait in the background.

Bale has lit up Tottenham’s debut season in the Champions League, with his performance at San Siro the highlight. Moratti was in raptures, not only about Bale’s pace and technique but his character. He was impressed the Welshman had carried the fight for Spurs almost single-handed but he remained wedded to the team ethic.

Maicon’s reputation appeared to be in tatters after his meetings with Bale. At White Hart Lane, the crowd chanted “Taxi for Maicon” to compound his humiliation.