Real Madrid have rejected claims that Gareth Bale has eclipsed Cristiano Ronaldo as the highest-paid player at the club after he put pen to paper on a new six-year contract.
The La Liga giants were reported to have handed the Welsh superstar an astronomical £360k-a-week deal after tax - a wage that would have seen Bale earn an unbelievable £750k-a-week overall - for the deal he agreed to sign that will keep him at Real until June 2022.
However, The Sunnewspaper has now revealed that the £360k-a-week salary that Bale will earn is before tax, which ensures that the 27-year-old will net £175k-a-week instead and only put him on pair with the second highest earner at the Bernabeu, alongside Los Blancos captain Sergio Ramos.
Incredible feeling to sign at the biggest club in the world for another 6 years!! #bale2022 #halamadrid pic.twitter.com/0HYnTqmc1S
The rumoured £750k-a-week figure would have seen Bale earn more money than Ronaldo, as well as Barcelona stars Neymar and Lionel Messi, but officials at Real moved to clarify just how much Bale will pocket after speculation pointed to the contrary.
Bale's new deal is thought to include clauses that will reward the forward with monetary bonuses if he wins FIFA's coveted Ballon d'Or prize, as well as helping to fire Real to more silverware success.
The contract is also believed to contain a eye-watering transfer release clause fee, a £1bn price tag, with the hope that such a clause will ward off interest from the likes of Manchester United for Bale's services.
Meanwhile, Ronaldo, 31, is still on course to sign a new deal with Real as talks continue over extending his stay with the Champions League holders, and The Sun believes that the Portugal captain will be handed a similar wage to the one that he currently earns with the Spanish outfit.
One potential sticking point over handing Ronaldo fresh terms has been Real's reluctance to give the former Manchester United footballer the five-year contract he craves, but discussions remain positive as a potential deal is thrashed out.
Real have been keen to tie down a host of first team stars ahead of the FIFA imposed transfer ban that prohibits them from making new signings over the course of the next two transfer windows, with Toni Kroos and Luka Modric having also penning new long-term deals in the past few weeks.
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