Footie Central | Football Blog Blogging the football world
Manchester United are increasingly confident that they can keep hold of Paul Pogba this summer.
Although they are likely to have to lower their valuation of the midfielder from the £150 million they were demanding at the end of last season – a figure that nobody came close to matching – even at a reduced price, there will be few takers for him in the current market.
United will still want at least the £89 million that they paid Juventus for him in 2016, and the amount of money that clubs will have to spend this year is likely to be substantially less, with the income of many severely hit by the postponement of league and European campaigns.
And the player’s marketability also has not been enhanced after a season in which he has made just five Premier League starts after ankle and foot injuries.
Manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has talked up the possibility of reintegrating Pogba in the team, and of the Frenchman forming a partnership with Bruno Fernandes, so it looks likely he will still be wearing a United shirt next season, whenever that may be.
Andy is an exiled English football fan living in Cyprus. He loves all sports but football is his abiding passion, and he still has dreams every now and then about scoring the winning goal in a Wembley Cup Final, even though his playing days are long gone. He follows most major leagues, across Europe at least, and has a favoured team in each. When he’s not watching, listening, reading or downloading podcasts about football, he spend his time worrying about his beloved Arsenal.