The 4 biggest transfer sagas of this summer

The months of June and July is void of European football. Despite no big game nights, fans find these two months interesting because of the countless transfer rumours and speculations.

Agents add oil to the burning fire with their transfer gossips. Players get featured in the headlines for both speaking and being silent. It is a tricky period for professionals.

The fans always find this period interesting in the hope that new players will arrive to make their team better.

Here are the biggest transfer sagas of this summer, with all the twists and turns:

#4 Paul Pogba

Paul Pogba to Real Madrid has been a story for more than a year now. Manchester United's disastrous last season coupled with Zidane's return to Madrid's hot seat meant the story came to the front pages again.

Paul Pogba fired the spark, saying that Real Madrid is a dream club towards the end of last season. He gave a boost to the rumours by saying that he was looking for a new challenge elsewhere after three seasons at Manchester United. Pogba's agent Mino Raiola made it public that his client wants to leave Old Trafford. Zinedine Zidane at Real Madrid kept delivering welcoming words to his countryman.

United's manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer gave no clue about his star player whatsoever. He kept denying that Pogba was leaving. He even said Pogba could be United's captain next season. Those consistent efforts appear to be a success for now. Pogba performed at his best in United's pre-season. He also has not spoken a word since the games began.

Madrid's poor form will make Pogba think twice before making a switch. Without any late drama, Pogba will remain a United player for at least a year.

#3 Matthijs de Ligt

Former Ajax man de Ligt is now a Juventus player

The young Ajax star was the hottest target when the transfer window opened. Mino Raiola was his agent. The clubs that entered the race to sign him were Liverpool, Manchester United, Barcelona, Paris and Real Madrid. Liverpool and Madrid signed off in early stages and De Ligt's future kept juggling between Camp Nou and Old Trafford.

Manchester United used their legend Van der Sar to convince the youngster to United. Barcelona tried to convince his agent with high sums of money. Every day in June had a piece of news that de Ligt was close to signing for a club. Juventus entered the race relatively late. United's absence in Champions League and Barca's reluctance to high demands favoured the Italian champions.

Juventus roped in de Ligt for £76.95 million. Juventus signing Matthijs de Ligt is a big surprise considering the Italians were nowhere near when the race began.

#2 Antoine Griezmann

Antoine Griezmann has been Barcelona's target ever since Neymar departed. The Frenchman has also shown interest in moving to the Catalan giants. Griezmann's transfer started a legal battle between the two stakeholders.

He had signed an agreement with Barcelona without Atletico Madrid's knowledge in March of this year. Griezmann's release clause at that time was €200 million. Barcelona made an official bid to Atletico Madrid in July when his release clause was €120 million.

Atletico argues that Barcelona should pay €200 million because the agreement with the player was signed in March. Barcelona is reluctant to pay the extra €80 million because their official bid was on July 1. Griezmann has already made his Barcelona debut, but the issue persists. The two clubs are in close talks to arrive at a compromise.

#1 Gareth Bale

Zidane's hostility towards Gareth Bale reached the climax this summer. The two never had cordial relationships in their two and a half years together. Bale's consistent injuries made Zidane sideline him during his first tenure. Bale, on the other hand, performed at his very best in most chances he got under the Frenchman. Two goals as a substitute in Champions League final against Liverpool in 2018 is the best highlight of Bale's answers to Zidane.

When reports emerged that Bale was not in Zidane's plan, the Welshman said he would rather play golf by having wages from Madrid than leaving the club.

Zidane during one of his press conferences in preseason said Bale was not in the squad because he was close to leaving the club. He said the club was looking to sell the player. Bale and his agent were surprised by this statement. Bale's agent criticized Zidane in public. Bale played two games after the incident, scoring in one of them.

Media added more fire by posting pictures of Bale smiling during Real's 3-7 humiliation against Atletico. Reports emerged that Bale was close signing a £1 million a week contract for a Chinese club.

In the very next day of the reports, Real Madrid took a big turn releasing a statement saying Bale was staying at Madrid.

This story has just begun. How Zidane and Bale will patch up when the season starts is the current story of discussion.