The summer’s biggest transfer saga appears to be edging closer to completion. Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has described Paul Pogba’s arrival in the Premier League as “imminent.”
The Portuguese bench boss, speaking after his side’s 2-1 win over Leicester in the English Community Shield on Sunday, described his excitement about the potential move.
“Finally we have him. He comes to a winning side – a team who have won their last two matches, in the FA Cup (last season) and today. He has to work hard to come to the team,” he told BT Sport after the match.
The former Chelsea head coach’s words came after his club had confirmed earlier on Sunday that Pogba was set to undergo a medical.
A short statement on their club website said the medical would “finalise his transfer from Juventus to Manchester United.”
Although Mourinho wouldn’t be drawn on the size of the fee, reports throughout the summer have suggested Pogba will become the world’s most expensive player at 117 million euros ($130 million). This would eclipse those reportedly paid by Real Madrid for Cristiano Ronaldo and Gareth Bale.
Early signs that a deal was imminent came when Pogba didn’t travel with the Juventus squad to London for their 3-2 friendly win against West Ham United on Sunday.
Pogba, who enjoyed a successful time at Juventus winning four Serie A titles and reaching the 2015 Champions League final, left United for about a million euros in 2012 and played a major part as France reached the final of Euro 2016.
If the move is confirmed, Pogba will join young Ivorian defender Eric Bailly, Armenian international Henrikh Mkhitaryan and veteran Swedish striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic in arriving at Old Trafford this summer.
