Chelsea, Manchester United given boost in pursuit of Real Madrid midfielder

Managerial change always leads to transfer rumors, especially when the club in question is the size of Real Madrid.

According to the Telegraph, former Tottenham player Gareth Bale is 'devastated' by Rafael Benítez's sacking from Los Merengues, as he was one of few Real Madrid players who wasn't in bad form under his guidance. In the report, it is claimed that Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez asked Benítez to set up the team around Bale's abilities, going as far as to indicate that the club could sell Cristiano Ronaldo in the foreseeable future to give way to the Welshman.

The Telegraph suggests that Bale is set to seek assurance from new manager Zinedine Zidane about his place in the team moving forward. If Zidane doesn't share the same ideals of the previous manager, then Bale might look to move back to the Premier League, with Chelsea, Manchester City and Manchester United all willing to pay £75 million to take him out of Spain. It's all rather silly, to be fair, but it's that's par for the course from the rumor mill.

Whether Zidane has the same plans as Benítez or not, Bale would certainly be a great fit with this Chelsea squad, especially as he'd be considered 'homegrown'. Then again, the likelihood is that all this is nothing but utter nonsense is fairly high.