Tottenham moves for Gareth Bale and Reguilon show Mourinho allure as Real Madrid partnership finally bears fruit

When Luka Modric left Tottenham to sign for Real Madrid in the summer of 2012, Spurs chairman Daniel Levy announced a "special partnership" with the Spanish giants.

Levy said he hoped the two clubs would share a "long and productive relationship", but the benefits of the agreement were never seen in north London. Instead, Gareth Bale followed Modric from White Hart Lane to the Santiago Bernabeu 12 months later.

Seven years down the line, the "partnership" has long been forgotten by most, but those cordial terms may well have helped Spurs in their sensational bid to bring back Bale and also sign left-back Sergio Reguilon.

Jose Mourinho is also likely to have played a pivotal part in the double deal.

The Portuguese remains close to Madrid president Florentino Perez and their friendship will have made negotiations smoother with the construction magnate, an old-school operator who has built up his business empire with the help of networking and powerful connections.

When Real bought Modric in 2012, Mourinho was the coach and the Croatian's signing is still considered one of the best decisions he made in his three-year tenure at the Bernabeu.

Mourinho had wanted to sign Bale as well that same summer, but he was gone by the time the Welshman arrived in a €100 million transfer in 2013.

"I asked the club to buy him last season but it was not possible," he said.

"The way my Real Madrid was playing, I think it was an easy player to fill a space and to get into that tactical dynamic."

He was proved right. Under Mourinho, Real Madrid reached three successive Champions League semi-finals, but fell short each time. After he left and Bale joined, Los Blancos won the competition the following season with Carlo Ancelotti as coach. And later three times more under Zinedine Zidane.

Bale, for all of his problems at Real Madrid, helped to take the club to that next level and scored in two of the four finals.

It was his header that made it 2-1 against Atletico Madrid in 2014 and his brace (including a spectacular overhead kick) that sealed victory over Liverpool in 2018. He also assisted Sergio Ramos in the second final with Atletico in 2016 and netted a penalty in the shootout.

Not much has gone right for Bale since the final in Kiev. When Cristiano Ronaldo left in the summer of 2018, the Welshman was expected to step up. Zidane had wanted to sell the former winger and keep the Portuguese, but left himself when it became clear the opposite was about to happen.

Perez had backed Bale, but brought back Zidane after the troubled tenures of Julen Lopetegui and Santiago Solari in 2018-19. The reunion was never likely to be a positive one for the Welshman as the French coach was charged with rebuilding the team.

After almost swapping Madrid for China last summer, when Zidane said "if he leaves tomorrow, all the better", Bale initially featured at the season start when others were injured but was increasingly frozen out and made just two appearances after lockdown.

His apparent apathy on the bench in those matches upset some supporters, as did his golf game in Madrid after he had asked to be left out of the squad to face Manchester City. There was the famous 'Wales. Golf. Madrid" banner, too, after which he was whistled by an angry Bernabeu crowd in November.

After all that, it is surely time for Bale to move on, even though he has two years left on his contract and has hinted at seeing it out in the past. And it was refreshing to hear him reveal recently that he remains committed to his profession, when many have doubted that to be the case.

"I want to play football," he said earlier this month. "I'm still motivated to play football. I'm 31 but I'm in great shape still and I feel I've got a lot to give."

A return to a club which was his home for six seasons and where he was happy seems ideal and Mourinho could also be the right man to reignite his passion after a few difficult years in Spain.

Arguably, Bale's style of play was always more suited to the open spaces of the Premier League and he has struggled at times as rival sides sit back and defend against Real Madrid.

The Welshman could comfortably slot into a number of roles in this Tottenham team and although injuries will be a concern, he is still in great shape. During lockdown, he recorded the best results in fitness tests conducted by Madrid's medical staff, yet barely appeared after that.

With a point to prove and playing under a coach and a set of fans who admire him, Bale could be a player transformed. And this time, Mourinho will be the beneficiary.

Like Bale, Reguilon will also want to show Madrid they have made a mistake by letting him leave.

The left-back was one of Real's standout performers in a difficult 2018-19 season, but was benched by ZIdane as the Frenchman favoured an out-of-sorts Marcelo on his return to the club.

Ferland Mendy then signed in the summer and when Marcelo stayed, there was no room left for Reguilon. So he joined Sevilla on loan and after Mendy, was probably LaLiga's best left-back in 2019-20 as the Andalusians finished fourth and also won the Europa League.

At the age of 23, Reguilon has his best years ahead of him. An athletic and aggressive defender who covers his flank well, he links up effectively with team-mates and offers a threat in attack, although his final ball needs improvement.

Mourinho praised the left-back in his role as a television analyst for beIN SPORTS after a Clasico clash last year. "One of the players that could show that Real Madrid traditional desire to compete against Barcelona was Reguilon," he said.

As with right-back Achraf Hamiki, who signed for Inter Miilan earlier this summer, it is surprising to see Reguilon sold by Madrid but not that Los Blancos hope to retain a buy-back option.

The defender's attributes appear well suited to the Premier League and also to Mourinho's coaching style.

Both Bale and Reguiilon have won trophies too and it is that mentality – along with their impressive technical qualities on the pitch – which Mourinho will want to instil in his squad.

Reguilon in particular seems to have been seduced by the idea of playing for Mourinho, having watched the Portuguese at his boyhood club between 2010 and 2013.

Thanks to a coach they used to call the 'Special One', Tottenham's "special partnership" with Real Madrid is finally bearing fruit.