Manchester United have opened discussions with Juventus over Paul Pogba, according to French publication, L’Equipe.
Pogba, now 23 years old, left United to join Juventus on a free transfer in 2012 after refusing the offer of a new contract from Sir Alex Ferguson because he had grown frustrated with a lack of first-team opportunities at Old Trafford.
But after Pogba made just seven first-team appearances for United, they are now said to be interested in seeing the France midfielder back in a red shirt.
The Old Lady have no intention of selling their prized possession for anything less than £82.8million (€100m), but there seems to be a desire on the behalf of Pogba’s agent Mino Raiola to impose his influence at United this summer, and Pogba would be a crucial part of doing so.
L’Equipe claim that United’s new boss Jose Mourinho is keen to implement a 4 -3-3 formation next season.
This is said to feature Pogba and captain Wayne Rooney in central midfield roles, Zlatan Ibrahimovic as the star forward, with Anthony Martial and Henrikh Mkhitaryan on either side.
Raiola represents both 34-year-old Swede Ibrahimovic, who has been at Paris Saint-Germain for the past four seasons, and Borussia Dortmund’s 27-year-old Armenian star, Mkhitaryan.
Interestingly, L’Equipe mention that Pogba has always intended to return to United as part of his career plan but the club’s lack of involvement in the Champions League could affect his decision to move back to north-west England this summer.
United executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward is due to meet with Juve chiefs next week for more discussions about a possible transfer and could even make the first offer for the player.
Mourinho was reportedly keen on bringing Pogba to England while manager of Chelsea last summer.
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