The relentless Paul Pogba to Real Madrid stories show no signs of letting up, with the latest gossip suggesting that Zinedine Zidane has issued an ultimatum to Paul Pogba, telling the Manchester United star's agent that a move to the Santiago Bernabeu is now or never.
Pogba has been ceaselessly linked with a switch to Los Blancos in recent months and, with United now certain not to qualify for the Champions League next season, the speculation will surely only grow.
However, as you might have realised from the several thousand gigabytes of news on the transfer saga, signing Pogba will not be easy. Previous reports have put United's valuation of the midfielder in excess of £160m, while the club are reluctant to lose a key asset.
The most recent update comes from The Sun, who claim that in order to help break the impasse, Zidane has told the Frenchman's agent, Mino Raiola, that it is now or never for him to make the move.
Fortunately for Zidane, it appears as though Pogba will choose now. The Sun's report claims Pogba is desperate to work under the legendary Frenchman, and has 'told friends' he wants to join Real.
Los Blancos want both Raiola and Pogba to force through a move away from United, in the hope that they can agree a fee of around £100m for the 26-year-old.
The Red Devils do not want to lose him, but it is suggested that they would not put up too much of a fight to stop him leaving, as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's preferred style of play does not play to Pogba's strengths.
The Norwegian has previously spoken of his desire to build his team around Pogba, but the midfielder does not believe this to be true. Solskjaer prefers a high-tempo passing game, which is not what Pogba does best, and there is a feeling that he is too expensive to keep around as an ineffective part of the squad.
As such, if United are offered a fee of over £100m, they could find it too tempting to turn down. The theory is that the money could then be reinvested in the playing squad, which would boost Solskjaer's hopes of undertaking a huge squad overhaul this summer.
Paul Pogba going missing against Huddersfield?!
— Stanley House (@StanleyHouseLFC) May 5, 2019
Took Naby Keita 15 seconds to score against them.
Solskjaer alluded once again to a summer overhaul in his post-match comments following the 1-1 draw with Huddersfield, hinting that some players had played their last game for the club.
The Sun's report names Jadon Sancho, Youri Tielemans and Gareth Bale on United's wish list, and selling Pogba would make it easier for United to finance expensive deals for multiple stars.
Source : 90min