Not Manchester United – The Club Pogba Wanted To Join After Leaving Juventus
REUTERS/Rebecca Naden
The prodigal return of Paul Pogba to Manchester United and his predicted long-term tenure with his boyhood club has come under massive threat these past months.
The midfielder has been insistently linked with a move to Barcelona, with several reports also claiming that the Catalan giants’ failed summer pursuit will inspire them to try again in the winter window.
At the same time, reports have been rampant that Pogba has instead decided to stay with United for the entire campaign, and will decide on his future next season.
Amidst all of this drama, a revelation has been made that perhaps Manchester wasn’t his intended return destination at all.
According to Manchester Evening News, Pogba wished to move to Real Madrid from Juventus, and wasn’t exactly keen on an Old Trafford reunion. The eventual decision was in fact the handiwork of his super-agent, Mino Raiola.
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Instead, it was Real Madrid, the club that was just beginning to taste success with Pogba’s childhood idol Zinedine Zidane, that was the more appealing destination to the Frenchman.
Further, Zidane himself wanted Pogba as well, but Raiola’s decision furnished the then-world-record transfer to United instead.
Two years on, much uncertainty exists over Pogba’s future, and Real Madrid’s bitter rivals, Barcelona, are the ones now interested in acquiring the world-class midfielder instead.
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This revelation now adds an interesting factor to the ever-lively saga. If both Pogba and Real Madrid are still keen, and there is no reason why the move shouldn’t materialise, and Los Blancos could certainly rival the Catalans for the player’s signature.
Of course, the lack of Zidane is a massive factor against the Galacticos, and that has instead fueled the likelihood of the French legend replacing Jose Mourinho at Old Trafford.
If uncertainty existed about United from the get-go, then there certainly seems great doubt over whether the love for his boyhood club will keep Pogba penned to the Mancunian giants.