Barcelona club president Josep Bartomeu has remained coy on speculation linking the Catalan giants with a move for Man Utd’s Paul Pogba.
As reported by the Metro, the reigning Spanish champions continue to be paired with an interest in signing the French international, albeit perhaps not in this transfer window.
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However, Bartomeu has seemingly refused to either confirm or deny the situation, as he has left the door open to a potential swoop by suggesting that Barcelona will assess their position and make a decision in due course with the window still open for Spanish clubs until the end of the month.
“I never speak about [specific] names, you know it,” Bartomeu told Spanish TV station TVE. “The truth is that there are 20 days remaining in the transfer window. I do not say it for this player [Pogba].
“This player is in his team and playing a competition. There are still 20 days left, we will see which players can leave and which players can come. We’ll see.”
Ultimately, it seems highly unlikely that a deal goes through this month. Aside from the fact that Man Utd will surely be desperate to keep hold of their best players, they will be unable to sign an immediate replacement given the window is closed for English clubs.
In turn, allowing their star man to leave and in turn be left short until January at the very least seems like a terrible strategy from a Man Utd perspective and so regardless of Bartomeu’s comments, Barcelona may find it difficult to do a deal this summer.
Perhaps it could be reignited next year, as suggested by the Metro, but having been handed the captain’s armband and produced a solid performance in United’s win over Leicester City on Friday night to get their season underway with a win, Pogba will be seen as a key part in Jose Mourinho’s pursuit of success this year.