Any hopes of Manchester United signing Gareth Bale have been dashed

It is no secret that Manchester United are long-term admirers of Real Madrid star Gareth Bale.

But any hopes that the Welsh wizard might switch Spain for Stretford look pretty much dead in the water. At one point it looked like the 26-year-old might be unsettled at the 10-time European champions, sparking rumours of a move back to the Premier League. But Bale's agent Jonathan Barnett says the forward is very happy at Real Madrid and has not even come close to quitting the La Liga giants for Old Trafford. In fact he said the £86m star, who signed for Madrid two years ago, wants to finish his career at the club. He blamed "stupid paper talk" for the rumours while speaking at the Soccerex convention, according to Eurosport.