Real Madrid do not need to pursue Paul Pogba as aggressively thanks to Fede Valverde’s breakout season, but Zinedine Zidane may still be interested in acquiring one of his top targets.
Paul Pogba bossed the midfield for France at the 2018 World Cup, but the 26-year-old has found it more difficult to be a consistent threat for Manchester United due to the turmoil around him. Still, there’s no denying his quality as one of the world’s best center midfielders, and he has the all-around skill-set to be a Real Madrid player.
But Los Blancos must be careful. As they saw in the summer window, Manchester United will not let their best player go for anything less than the highest possible price, as Florentino Perez ended up balking at Ed Woodward’s demands. Pogba has made it no secret that he would love to join Madrid, and it’s hard to envision him being happy at a chronically underperforming club like United.
Player-swaps involving the likes of Toni Kroos, Isco, and Gareth Bale have all been rumored, but El Desmarque’s Jorge Santos has a new one to report.
Pogba is reportedly pushing to leave for Madrid this winter, and Santos reports that Perez could offer United James Rodriguez, Mariano Diaz, and 85 million euros for the France international.
Mariano is set to leave on a loan deal anyway, and his agent said that he’s close to inking a two-year loan deal. The former 20-goal scorer for Lyon has clear talent and can help a team in one of Europe’s top five leagues, but while the Red Devils desperately need help at striker, it’s unclear if Mariano would be of interest to them.
Meanwhile, James would fill a huge need for United. He’s still an excellent attacking midfielder, as he showed earlier this season when healthy. His passing and creativity could help breathe new life into United’s attack. However, James’ injuries are a problem, and he’s currently nursing an ailment he suffered over the international break.
Assuming James is healthy by the winter, this may not be an awful deal for United. Mariano and James would be two contributors to a United team lacking depth, but United may also prefer higher-quality players, especially since they have younger options with more upside than Mariano. The 85 million euros, though, could go a long way in securing top talent and would be the most attractive part of this deal.
United also need immediate help in order to turn around their campaign, which James would provide. If nothing else than for the fun of it, this deal is worth filing away, but it is still hard to envision Real getting Pogba. That becomes a little be easier, though, if they can drive down United’s transfer fee enough to still afford Kylian Mbappe, and this can be achieved by a player(s)-plus-cash swap.