Mino Raiola has sparked further conversation over the future of Paul Pogba by naming one transfer possibility for the Manchester United midfielder.
Pogba has been the topic of much debate at Man Utd ever since returning to the club for a then-world-record fee in 2016. He has sometimes struggled to justify his price tag with form not representative of that he shows with France. But over the past few months, he has become more consistent.
In particular, he has begun this season in fine form. He has already contributed seven assists from his first four Premier League appearances. But the doubts about his future are still lingering.
The 2018 World Cup winner is out of contract at the end of the season. That puts Man Utd at risk of losing him for free for a second time. It would not be an ideal situation, but they also must weigh up whether a new contract would be worthwhile.
Still only 28 and in good form, it would seem a positive solution for United if it is financially viable.
But other options remain in the background with other clubs. There have been links with the likes of Paris Saint-Germain, Real Madrid and Barcelona.
The most likely option for Pogba away from Manchester, though, would seemingly be a return to Juventus, where he previously honed his craft. He won four consecutive Serie A titles there on course to becoming a player worthy of an Old Trafford return.
A return to Turin has always been a possibility and now – despite everything pointing to him committing to a new Man Utd contract – Pogba’s agent has stoked that fire once more.
“Pogba’s contract expires next year. We will speak with Manchester United and we will see,” Raiola told Rai Sport.
“Surely Turin has remained in his heart and he cares a lot about these things.
“There is the possibility that he returns to Juventus but it also depends on Juve.”
In his previous spell in Italy, Pogba made 178 appearances for Juventus and scored 34 goals. By contrast, with Man Utd (either side of that spell), he has provided 38 goals from 211 games.
Ever since Raiola ramped up the idea of him leaving United almost a year ago, Pogba has been hard at work on the pitch to win the fans over.
For how long he will continue to wear the red shirt will remain a mystery until any new contract is confirmed.
Ronaldo signing sabotages Pogba – pundit
The quotes come after pundit Jamie Carragher opined that United’s signing of Cristiano Ronaldo – also from Juventus – over the summer may have negative consequences for the Frenchman.
Carragher told the Telegraph: “[Ole Gunnar] Solskjaer and his coaches must spend hours deliberating on the various permutations with every line-up. Despite the obvious benefits of having a playing pool with such depth, occasionally a manager has too much choice.
“United’s Champions League defeat on Tuesday struck me as a classic example of a coach in a position where he could overthink his selection so ended up making changes in an attempt to keep everyone happy. This might become a recurring problem and is partially a knock-on effect from the Ronaldo deal.
“If we are brutally honest about it, Man Utd only moved for Ronaldo once they heard Manchester City were going to buy him.
“If they had gone into the summer transfer window prioritising a centre-forward, they would have signed one before paying £72.9 million for Jadon Sancho.
“The most immediate impact is on Sancho, who is now fighting with [Mason] Greenwood for his favoured position on the right.
“He played on the left wing in his first two United appearances, switching flanks in midweek prior to being subbed early when the team was reduced to 10 men.
“There are also consequences for Pogba. After his encouraging start, he was back in centre-midfield against Wolverhampton Wanderers, Newcastle and for the last hour in midweek. That’s when we saw the same flaws that have typified his United career.”
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