Barely a day goes by without Paul Pogba’s name working its way into at least one gossip column.
And, as we find ourselves hurtling towards transfer window season, there’s little hope of this changing.
Since joining Juventus a couple of years ago, Pogba has divided his time between assembling an impressive portfolio of long-range screamers, crafting a new haircut and (if Twitter is to be believed) bitching to anyone who will listen about how he was ‘disrespected’ by Manchester United.
https://youtu.be/4SXheUYmxB8
Ignoring the fact that he signed a new contract not long ago (because that sort of thing doesn’t mean anything nowadays), according to everyone Pogba is soon to be on the move again.
But who will he be joining? Let’s take a closer look…
Manchester United
An 18-year-old Pogba wasn’t good enough to break up the dynamic midfield partnership of Ji Sung Park and Rafael at Old Trafford and he’s since acknowledged that failing to get into the team ahead of this pair against Blackburn in 2011 played a big part in his exit.
United could obviously still make room for a player of Pogba’s quality, and may even be willing to splurge the huge amounts of money required to get him back. However, the chances of him rekindling his bromance with Adnan Januzaj look slim. 4/10
Januzaj and Pogba celebrate winning the Manchester Senior Cup three years ago #mufc pic.twitter.com/jUYxH1AxZe"
— Gideon. (@Dayox_) February 17, 2015
Manchester City
Since 2008, the Abu Dhabi royals have been happy to blow millions of petrodollars in making Manchester City one of the world’s greatest teams. And following another defeat this week, many have decided they need to splurge a few more to challenge for next year’s title.
Pogba fits the bill to bring some youthful exuberance to City’s lineup but, with pressure to comply with FIFA’s Financial Fair Play rule, they would probably have to move others on if they are to land the man that could well be their new Jamie Pollock. 4/10
Paris Saint-Germain
Another member of football’s nouveau riche and based in Pogba’s home town, PSG is quite an obvious link to make.
Assuming they can hurdle the same FFP barriers that City have to consider, it’s hard to see why Pogba wouldn’t think very seriously about this move. With the French league not as highly regarded as some of his other options however, it’s by no means nailed on. 8/10
Chelsea
We already know that Pogba likes playing as Chelsea on Football Manager and despite recent wobbles the Blues should seal the title in a few weeks. Playing for the newly-crowned Premier League champions should be more than a little enticing for Pogba.
For Juventus, the potential to negotiate a deal for a couple of Chelsea players to move in the other direction should soften the blow of seeing Pogba head to London. 7/10
Paul Pogba has transferred himself to Chelsea on football manager http://t.co/TYhsTHKm9r
— ⭐⭐ (@SignEveryone) March 18, 2015
Real Madrid
He’s learning Spanish, apparently. Add to that, Zinedine Zidane is employed in Madrid and carries considerable clout when persuading and young footballer (especially French ones, especially especially French ones he can chat to about Juventus) to join his club. Madrid are also quite good at football, which may be an added bonus. 8/10
Barcelona
Realistically the only other option Pogba has in Spain. There’s been a fair bit of speculation surrounding this potential move in Catalunya, and even Pavel Nedved has confirmed that Barcelona are interested.
But it’s all assuming that the club’s transfer ban won’t actually be upheld. This sort of thing has been revoked in the past so don’t be too surprised if that’s the case and that Barca make a serious play for him. 8/10
