Manchester United transfer news: Mino Raiola refuses to rule out Paul Pogba returning to Juventus

Juventus and Real Madrid are thought to be the only sides that remain interested in signing Pogba this summer

Jack Watson
Thursday 18 July 2019 08:11 BST
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Ole Gunnar Solskjaer confident Paul Pogba will be at Manchester United next season

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Paul Pogba’s agent Mino Raiola has refused to rule out the Manchester United midfielder returning to Juventus.

The World Cup winner put the top clubs in Europe on alert when he revealed he wants “a new challenge somewhere else”.

United want to keep Pogba at Old Trafford, meaning a required transfer fee is likely to be well above the £89m they spent to sign him from Juventus in 2016.

That and the lofty wages make just a handful of clubs able to afford the 26-year-old.

Zinedine Zidane has spoken about his desire to sign him, while a return to Juventus is on the cards as they continue their pursuit of the Champions League trophy.

Raiola was asked about the possibility of Pogba returning to Juventus and failed to rule out a future move. "I live my life day by day,” he said. “This is what I can say. Today I am here; tomorrow, I don't know."

The agent recently said he wants a quick solution to Pogba’s transfer situation.

“Hopefully there will be soon a satisfying solution for all parties,” he told talkSPORT.

“The player [Pogba] has done nothing wrong. He has been respectful and professional in every way and always.

Paul Pogba has played in Manchester United's two pre-season matches (Getty)
Paul Pogba has played in Manchester United's two pre-season matches (Getty) (Getty Images)

“The club has known his feeling for a long time.

“It is a shame other people only like to criticise without the right information, and I am also sorry that the club does not take any position against this.”

The Independent recently revealed that United will revive their intersted in Tottenham's Christian Eriksen if Pogba eventually leaves this summer.

Following United’s 4-0 win against Leeds in Australia, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer said: "Paul is a fantastic player, a fantastic human being and has always been a great professional.

The Manchester United manager wants to keep Paul Pogba (Manchester United via Getty)
The Manchester United manager wants to keep Paul Pogba (Manchester United via Getty) (Manchester United via Getty Imag)

"I said (previously), 'if he's in your squad, you'd build your team around him'... I haven't changed that much since then, so I'd say the same now."

Raiola was in Turin to complete Matthijs de Ligt’s £67.5m transfer from Ajax to Juventus. Manchester United, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain were interested in signing him, but Raiola says the move to Italy is best for his career.

"It's not a matter of being ambitious or not," he said. "Juventus is the club that most suits his career ideas.

"It is important for a defender to play in Italy, to learn. In his mind, he wants to become the best footballer in the world. That is why this is a necessary stage in his career.

"Amongst the youngsters [in the world] he is number one, for sure. Then, it is not too hard to become the best in the world, but you have to work for it.

"He is the most similar player to - or even better than - [Pavel] Nedved in terms of mentality, and he is similar to Zlatan [Ibrahimovic] for his ambition. He has got everything to become what he has to become."

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