After a slew of reports, it seems Juventus midfield star Paul Pogba is indeed on the cusp of a move to Old Trafford. Ed Woodward has, according to Sky Italia and other reliable sources, submitted an official offer to Juventus believed to be around £100 million including performance related bonuses to the Serie A club. The Italian giants seem to be holding out for more though as negotiations are set to continue.
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Meanwhile, Jose Mourinho’s wife seems to have accidently shared a picture of his tactics board in the background, with Manchester United fans using their photoshop skills to decipher the names that Mourinho has penned down.
Jose’s wife was trying to take an adorable picture of her husband on the eve of United’s departure to China, but the tactics board in the background found it’s way in the picture too. Cue endless speculation about what United players are seemingly first choice in their starting lineup and also the discovery of a name that United are determined to land in the ongoing transfer window.
The picture in the tweet by Matilde seems to have faced extensive scrutiny by United fans, and while a closeup isn’t definitive, it seems quite likely the name above Fellaini is of the Juve and France midfield dynamo.
The board also seems to reveal that Rooney or Mata will play as an attacking midfielder, Martial will start as the first choice for the left wing with Depay behind in the pecking order. Luke Shaw and Chris Smalling also seem to be beating off the competition of Blind and Rojo for their places in the team for the time being.
Pogba didn’t light up Euro 2016 like many experts and fans predicted he would, but was also forced to play for most of the tournament as France’s deepest lying midfielder. He still had a good tournament, clocking up an array of passes and ball recoveries. Mourinho would surely give him much greater freedom in his United setup if he were to arrive.
Deployed mostly on the left of a midfield 3 for Juve, Pogba is just coming off his most productive season for Juve yet. He scored 8 goals and notched up 12 assists, also winning 8 man-of-the-match awards through the course of the Serie A season.
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While his price tag is undoubtedly steep, it reflects more on an inflated market that especially seems to value young talent much more than in previous years. With the fees being pulled out for players like Raheem Sterling, Anthony Martial, Renato Sanches and now seemingly Leroy Sane, a world record transfer fee for a 23-year-old who has already won 38 France caps perhaps might not seem so absurd.
Meanwhile, it would seem that Jose Mourinho is optimistic about sealing Pogba’s signature soon and seems to have made plans for his position in the team.
