Recent reports in the British press state that Manchester United are set to up their efforts to resign former star Cristiano Ronaldo from Real Madrid. Although one of the best players in the world, with the Portugal international’s contract running down at the Santiago Bernabeu, there are rumblings that the Spaniards may look to cash in on their star attacker.

However, Ronaldo’s fate may well be tied in with the future of Tottenham’s Gareth Bale, a player that odds suggest could move to the Spanish capital city giants. Should Madrid manage to pry the Welsh superstar away from the north London club, he could well be earmarked as a replacement for Ronaldo as the club’s main man.

Whether Spurs would be willing to sell Bale is another thing. The club are eager to hold onto their top player, and with the attacker still having a long-term contract at White Hart Lane, Tottenham are in no real need to sell their best player. That said, should Madrid put the pressure on the north London club, like they did in the pursuit of Luka Modric, there is every chance the player could push for a deal to be completed.

Bale is not the only big name being linked with a switch to Madrid. Luis Suarez, Edinson Cavani and Isco are all reported targets for the club, and with a new manager coming into place there could be major changes in the Spanish capital. To balance the books and to lead the club into a new era, it may well be deemed time for Ronaldo to move on too.

Ronaldo still has a thorough respect for his former club, and if he was to leave Madrid, United would be one of the few teams he would move to. Whether he would consider Ligue 1 with moneybags Paris Saint-Germain or AS Monaco is questionable, while only the likes of Manchester City or Chelsea would also be in a position to afford him.

There are a lot of ifs and buts to be answered this summer, but a return to United is not out of the question. However, it does depend on a lot of factors, and it may well be that Ronaldo stays with the Spanish giants for another year and assesses his future next summer.