ALL AFTERNOON TWITTER has been creaking under the excitement generated by one message posted by a single journalist.

Guardian sports editor Ian Prior teased his followers at 3.30pm, writing: “Major – and boy do I mean it – football exclusive coming up on guardian.co.uk sometime around 5.30″.

Thousands of football fans speculated on the subject of the yarn with guesses ranging form the sale of Manchester United to the retirement of Alex Ferguson to the transfer of Liverpool striker Fernando Torres.

As promised the Guardian posted a story at 5.30pm – but it’s proved a major let-down for its readers, it seems.

The newspaper says that Inter Milan will offer £40m for Spurs wing back Gareth Bale in the summer.

David Hytner continues: “That £40m sum could rise higher as the Italian champions’ move is expected to spark an immediate bidding war with Real Madrid, where José Mourinho has also made the Tottenham Hotspur winger his principal summer target.”

But those who spent their afternoon guessing the content of the story have been left underwhelmed: