The Mirror understand that Paul Pogba will command a transfer fee greater than £200m should Manchester United decide to sell.
The World Cup winner was left out of the side that crashed out of the EFL Cup to Championship outfit Derby County on Tuesday evening and after the match Jose Mourinho confirmed that he had removed the midfielder as his vice-captain.
Barcelona, Paris Saint Germain and the World Cup winner’s former club Juventus are all monitoring the situation at Old Trafford though they will need to shell out upwards of £200m if they want to do business.
Pogba has three years remaining on his current deal with the Red Devils, having re-signed from Juve in the summer of 2017.
In this, his second spell with the club the twenty-five-year-old…
Vincent Kompany s injury absences have been keenly felt by Manchester City but Pep Guardiola hailed a huge step after the captain led his side to a 5-0 win over Crystal Palace on Saturday.
Kompany scored at the Etihad Stadium for the first time since August 2015 when he slammed Kevin De Bruyne s low cutback into the top corner to spark a second-half rout of Sam Allardyce s side.
The 31-year-old centre-back has now completed 90 minutes in five of City s past six Premier League games – equalling his best run since last season, when an injury ravaged campaign ended with him limping out of the Champions League semi-final loss to Real Madrid and requiring groin and thigh surgery.
City have struggled for defensive solidity under Guardiola but boast clean sheets in th…
Julian Nagelsmann insisted his Bayern Munich side are good enough as questions continued over the attacking capabilities of his Bundesliga champions.
Robert Lewandowski scored 50 goals in 46 matches for Bayern last season in all competitions, making him the top scorer in Europe s top five leagues, but departed for Barcelona in July.
Nagelsmann s side brought in Sadio Mane from Liverpool prior to the Poland international s exit, though the Senegal forward has failed to fill the void with questions persisting over Bayern s attacking options.
Harry Kane and Cristiano Ronaldo have both repeatedly been suggested as potential solutions for Bayern, whose lack of clinical finishing to kill games off has led to criticism.
When asked about the profligate nature of …
Bayern Munich have announced the signing of defender Omar Richards on a free transfer.
Richards moves to the Bundesliga champions from Reading, having made 42 appearances for the Championship club during the 2020-21 season.
The left-back, who represented England at under-21 level, has agreed a four-year deal that runs through until 2025.
My move to Bayern is a great honour for me. A dream has come true, Richards told Bayern s official website.
I m proud to be wearing the shirt of one of the world s biggest clubs. I hope I can help the team continue to be successful in the future.
My thanks to the management at Bayern for their trust. Our conversations were very convincing. I can t wait to be on the pitch for Bayern.
— …
Former Real Madrid star Zinedine Zidane is set for a more hands-on role at the Spanish giants, especially during Champions League matches, the club s director general Jorge Valdano said on Thursday.
He will accompany us always during Champions League matches, and in some league matches, Valdano told reporters when asked about what the former French international s new role at the club alongside coach Jose Mourinho will be.
He will not sit on the bench and will help Mourinho in his relationship with the first team; not in technical work, but bringing his experience by being close to the coach and the team.
Earlier on Thursday, sport daily Marca reported that Zidane had met Real president Florentino Perez and Valdano to finalise his role and the paper speculate…
Germany manager Joachim Loew has chosen some of the Bundesliga s brightest young stars to make their international debuts in Gothenburg.
Borussia Dortmund left-back Marcel Schmelzer and 18-year-old playmaker Mario Goetze are in the mix for their first caps, while Mainz attackers Lewis Holtby and Andre Schurrle could also start.
Dortmund s Mats Hummels and Kevin Grosskreutz are other young players vying for selction, and both would be earn their second cap should they play.
Schweinsteiger believes each of the new faces has something to offer the national side.
These are players with great potential they re between 18 and 21 and in this regard we re ahead of other national teams, he told Reuters on Tuesday.
It s an important point and for a coac…
Shinji Kagawa believes the immediate impact made by Jurgen Klopp at Liverpool proves his greatness as a manager.
The 26-year-old spent two seasons under the German at Borussia Dortmund, having been signed by him from Cerezo Osaka before moving to Manchester United in 2012.
Kagawa returned to spend a final year under Klopp in 2014 at Dortmund – now managed by Thomas Tuchel – and he has been impressed from afar with his former boss early work at Anfield after replacing Brendan Rodgers.
I am interested in how much and how quickly Klopp, the manager that I know, can change the team at Liverpool, the Japan international told Omnisport.
He is a great coach and the results prove it, so I hope it will continue for him and I am interested in how much…
Marco Verratti has reached an agreement with Paris Saint-Germain over a new, long-term contract.
Manchester United and Real Madrid have been linked with moves for Verratti, who joined PSG from Pescara in 2012 and has since blossomed into one of Europe s top-rated playmakers.
The 23-year-old s existing contract is due to expire in June 2019 but his agent has revealed it is only a matter of time before he will ink a renewal.
We have agreed terms over a new deal, Donato Di Campli told Corriere dello Sport.
It is only a matter of putting it down on paper. Marco will stay with PSG for a long time, at least until 2020.
This is already the fourth time he has signed a contract renewal [since joining PSG]. He now has to show again that he is worth his w…
Steven Gerrard has agreed to extend his contract as Glasgow Rangers manager, according to Sky Sports.
Apparently, negotiations over the extension were over very quickly and the new deal is set to keep the former Liverpool captain at the Ibrox until the summer of 2024, two years longer than the current one.
There was talk recently about Gerrard s potential return to Liverpool when Jurgen Klopp eventually leaves the club, sparked by the German himself revealing that the club legend would be his own preferred choice to replace him in the Anfield dugout. For his part, Gerrard responded by stating that he, as a Liverpool fan at the moment, would love Klopp to stay where he is for a long time yet, implying that it was far too early to discuss such possibilities.
Gerra…
Murmurs about Pep Guardiola s potential departure from Manchester City are not going away.
Recent reports have suggested the successful Catalan could look to leave the Etihad Stadium at the end of the season.
It now appears Guardiola has the power to make that happen.
TOP STORY – GUARDIOLA S ESCAPE ROUTE
An exit clause in the contract Guardiola signed last year gives the two-time Premier League winner the chance to leave City at the conclusion of the campaign, reports the Daily Mail.
Guardiola s deal, which he renewed in May 2018, runs through to 2021, but it seems he will have a decision to make when the club s title defence comes to a close.
City have formulated contingency plans, according to the report, and are known to be…