Gareth Bale could still play for Cardiff City after Los Angeles stint, says club owner Vincent Tan

Gareth Bale's exit from Real Madrid turned heads in Wales, with many believing the five-time Champions League winner could swap the European champions for Championship side Cardiff City.

But the 32-year-old announced earlier this week that he'll instead join MLS side Los Angeles FC on a 12-month contract.

There is an option for Bale to extend his contract with LAFC should he wish to stay in the United States, but Cardiff City owner Vincent Tan remains positive about his chances of landing the Wales captain next year.

"His contract is for 12 months, let's see what happens," said Tan.

"Maybe Gareth, by then, will probably want to come back and come home and serve his country, serve Cardiff, his hometown.

"He has never played in Cardiff, he and his family are fans of the club.

"So, hopefully, in 12 months' time, he is still young, he will only be 34, some players come back and play until they are 40 years old.

"So he has still got a few years he can play and hopefully he will come and play for Cardiff after this."

While it seemed improbable that Bale would transition directly from his £600,000-a-week contract in Madrid to playing in the second tier of English football, the Welshman doesn't seem too fussed over the pay in his contract.

Instead, Bale seems to be prioritising remaining fit and ready for the World Cup this winter. Wales managed to qualify for the tournament for the first time in 64 years, and as a key player, Bale is keen to be in peak condition for their trip to Qatar.

With that in mind, it's clear to see why Bale considered a move back to his roots this summer, but Tan believes the attraction of American sponsorships and commercial deals was too good to turn down.

"We were very, very keen, he would have been a big coup for us," Tan said.

"It would have been great for Gareth to play for his hometown, all the Welsh would be very happy if Gareth returned home and played for Cardiff.

"Personally, I think LAFC's offer was too attractive for him to turn down. But originally he really wanted to come, the money wasn't the matter.

"We came up with what we thought was a good offer to him, but finally it was very hard to compete when there is a lot of big American advertisers, a lot of commercial deals which were very good for Gareth.

"Initially with Gareth, it wasn't really the money, he just wanted to help Cardiff and help Wales. That's why we could negotiate with him.

"He tried his best to join us but eventually I think the offer from LAFC was just too big to turn down.

"We tried our best but we failed."