Will Pogba leave Juventus?
Pogba is the most naturally gifted player I have seen at such a young age, not just in our colours but in any colours, since Zidane appeared from Bordeaux. He is already one of the finest offensive midfielders in the game and has huge scope for improvement. I would be bothered to see him leave, yet long ago accepted that leave he will, its just a matter of time. But to where?
City have the funds (yet how the hell does forking out probably around 70m tie in with their FFP routine?! Have they also bought UEFA now?) but not the allure or prestige. They are not a storied club and represent solely a huge step up in wages. As well as signing for the city rivals of a former club. Their squad needs renovation, they have endured a poor season and I have no belief that Pogba would consider that move.
He is no mercenary. He simply wants to play, and compete at the highest level. Considering who could afford him, only Munich, Barca, Chelsea and Real could tempt him. All of which could be seen as a step up in terms of the squad he would be entering.
Whilst Pirlo is old, and a fair few others, nobody else in key positions are yet close to long in the tooth. Which makes Verratti interesting. Especially when combined with our longstanding interest in Marco, as well as more recently Cavani. Yet PSG does not seem a step up for Pogba. Only in terms of money. Indeed he is french, and grew up not far from Paris, yet has never given the impression he longs for a return to the region or of any particular affinity with PSG.
It will be Barca, Real or Munich. Most likely Real. Whether he moves this Summer I suspect is tied in to how we fare tonight and beyond if we get there. If we were to magically lift the treble, what would be left for him to achieve in Italy? Other than helping us move from establishing ourselves as once again a top eight european side and challenging for the top honours with more gusto and consistency next year?
He may feel that his tuition from legends of the game at Juve and other top class players, in a fertile environment where he is clearly well loved and respected and enjoys his life, with a new contract, is worth sticking with for at least another year.
I hope so.
If he does depart…
Dybala seems to be close to a done deal. For a huge cost. With that swine Zamparini receiving what he set out to find, other than the auction he had dreamt of. EU28m with up to an extra EU8m in potential add-ons is a massive fee for a player who whilst looking wonderful as a little lad, struggled in Italy up until this campaign. It is a risk, which reminds me of the Iturbe saga last year which left me dejected…until a month or three into the season.
The argie is young, blessed with wonderful dribbling ability, great control and a top drawer left peg. At 21 he has room for improvement, yet close to 40 million euro nuggets??? A risk. Perhaps worth taking. Players performing amazingly at lower ranked teams can seem deceptively special. At Juve he would have far better players around him, yet also have far less space afforded him by opponents. Teams play more openly against weaker opponents, more defensively against stronger foes. As we will have to this evening. Is he truly a phenomenon?
What strikes me as well worth a mention is Berardi. Who has enjoyed yet another quality campaign, again, with a weaker side. He is younger still, has similar potency to Dybala, has found more consistent success in the top flight and we already own half of his registration and must sort out that deal for one owner in the Summer.
Indeed, he is rather eager in the challenge, yet that can be moderated with solid coaching. So I wonder why we seem likely to leave him be rather than bring probably the most talented young italian forward who we already have a stake in, to Piedmont.
Their skillsets are different but their potency appears, presently, similar. So why spend up to 40m on one, when we could spend probably 10-15m on the other?
Recent Comments