Juventus ‘to bid £200m for Paul Pogba’ and could sell Chelsea targets Gonzalo Higuain and Daniele Rugani to fund deal
Italian champions linked with stunning offer for Pogba to add to Cristiano Ronaldo arrival, but will need to sell a number of big names to finance move
JUVENTUS will test Manchester United with a world-record £200million offer for Paul Pogba, according to reports.
Having recently , Juve would need to sell a number of high-profile players to finance any deal for Pogba.
And according to the , they are willing to let Chelsea targets Gonzalo Higuain and Daniele Rugani go to raise funds for a £200m opening offer, which would make Pogba the world's most expensive player for a second time.
The Blues have been linked with the pair as new boss Maurizio Sarri raids Serie A for reinforcements after joining from Napoli this summer.
Miralem Pjanic and Mattia Caldara are also reportedly available as Juventus go all out for Pogba.
Pogba, who swapped Turin for Old Trafford in a then-record £89m deal in 2016, has failed to impress boss Jose Mourinho and could be handed a way out by his former employers.
The Frenchman, who helped his country become world champions with a goal in the final against Croatia, has endured a miserable time in Manchester after a public falling out with Mourinho.
On several occasions last season the Portuguese boss used Scott McTominay over Pogba.
And Mourinho, who highlighted Pogba's inconsistency for his benching, could not even bring himself to praise the player when he lifted the World Cup in Russia.
Instead he questioned why the player had not reproduced his France form at club level, saying: "I don't think it's about us getting the best out of him. It's about him giving the best he has to give.
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"I think the World Cup is the perfect habitat for a player like him to give the best. Why? Because it's closed for a month, where he can only think about football.
"Where he's with his team on the training camp, completely isolated from the external world, where they focus just on football, where the dimensions of the game can only motivate.
"During a (club) season, you can have a big match then a smaller match, then one even smaller, then you can lose your focus, you can lose your concentration, then comes a big match again."
Since rejoining United, where he came through the academy before leaving for Italy in 2012, Pogba has scored 15 goals in 88 games, but has flattered to deceive on many big occasions.
A potential Juventus firesale to pay for the Pogba deal would represent a huge boost for Chelsea, who are desperate to secure Higuain's signature as they look to solve their forward line issues.
Club-record signing Alvaro Morata scored just 15 times last season after a £60m move from Real Madrid, and January arrival Olivier Giroud has been linked with an Atletico Madrid switch.
Centre-back Rugani, 24, is also on Sarri's radar and is one of the highest-rated defenders in Serie A.
With opportunities limited at his current club by the likes of Giorgio Chiellini and Andrea Barzagli, Chelsea could be set to offer him a fresh start at Stamford Bridge.
