French midfield star Paul Pogba has been given permission to have a medical at Manchester United in order to finalize his transfer from Juventus, according to an official statement from the English club.
Just four years ago Manchester United allowed him to leave for next to nothing. As he makes his return, the fee has not yet been made public, but is likely to be a world record, with his transfer reportedly costing as much as $131 million.
The 23-year-old follows in the footsteps of Zlatan Ibrahimvoic as Jose Mourinho’s Old Trafford revolution takes shape.
But is Pogba worth the money?
In 35 Serie A appearances last season, the versatile Frenchman scored eight times from midfield — more than United’s Herrera, Schneiderlin, Carrick and Fellaini combined — providing 12 assists, the most in the division.
At 1.91 meters tall, he possesses strength and stature, but also deceptive speed — regularly bursting through the lines for Juventus last season, seizing games by the scruff of the neck to take his team forward.
Allied to Pogba’s stature is an elegance with the ball that’s showcased on highlight reels around the world. No United player completed more successful dribbles than Pogba’s total of 102 last season.
The ebullient swagger that once contributed to Sir Alex Ferguson letting Pogba go has gone on to define his playing style, in turn contributing to his rise.
Young shoulders
But with a huge price tag there comes pressure to deliver. Of the 20 players to have broken the transfer world record since Johan Cruyff in 1973, only two — Ruud Gullit (1987) and Zidane (2001) — can be regarded as midfielders in the vein of Manchester United’s new signing.
While a 30-goal forward, like Alan Shearer, Cristiano Ronaldo — or more recently Gonzalo Higuain — can prove their worth in concrete terms by firing their team to the title, Pogba faces a very different challenge.
After United confirmed Pogba’s medical, Mourinho’s team beat Leicester 2-1 in the Community Shield, which is the English football season’s curtain raiser, with Ibrahimovic scoring the winner.