All the big Transfer Deadline Day deals

TOTTENHAM last night conceded defeat in their ambitious ploy to bring back Gareth Bale.

Sportsmail revealed yesterday how Spurs had held talks with Real Madrid over the possibility of re-signing their former forward, though there was pessimism over their chances due to Bale’s mammoth £600,000-a-week wages. But the club did make a genuine effort to clinch the stunning transfer and even went to the extent of sending representatives to Madrid to negotiate a potential deal. With the Welshman reluctant to take a pay cut — and Spurs unwilling to match his wages — the club tried to be creative in structuring a deal to suit all parties. One option would have seen Tottenham pay Real a fee of around £45million, which would then be paid directly back to Bale, whose current deal expires in 2022, with Spurs then paying the attacker the shortfall in his £31m salary over a two-and-half-year deal. But the financial side ultimately proved prohibitive.

Meanwhile, Jose Mourinho revealed that Christian Eriksen told him on his first day at Spurs that he had no intention of staying at the club. His contract was set to expire in June and the new head coach did not try to change his mind prior to his £12m move to Inter this week. ‘The day I arrived he told me he was not going to sign,’ said Mourinho, who replaced Mauricio Pochettino in November. ‘Christian told me the decision was made and there was no way. ‘From that moment, I was just trying to build the team without him. That was the reason why I didn’t play him many, many times. ‘Christian was a good guy in the dressing room. Always positive and always respectful — with the limitations of somebody who wants to leave.’