The rebuild of Manchester United could definitely take some time, so get ready and dig your heels in for that. The upshot is that we’ll have a summer transfer window filled with many comings and goings.
And with Manchester United linked to approximately 97,324 players already, the time is right for some Red Devils transfer talk.
We begin with your daily Paul Pogba to Real Madrid “will he or won’t he?” update. Prepare yourself because this is one transfer saga that could grow quite tedious this summer window. According to AS, the re-signing of Toni Kroos at Madrid throws the acquisition of Pogba into serious doubt.
The Kroos development is a major boost for United, as it now increases the likelihood that Pogba will stay.
Elsewhere, according to the Daily Mirror, the prospects of a swap deal are being discussed with Inter Milan as we speak. United CEO and primary object of club supporter scorn Ed Woodward is in talks to send Romelu Lukaku to Inter in exchange for Ivan Perisic and cash.
It’s no secret that Perisic has been a long time United target, and Lukaku has openly discussed leaving/making a move to Italy, so this might be a good deal for all involved. Lukaku doesn’t want to play second fiddle to Marcus Rashford and as of now he still has some value in the transfer market.
However, if he continues to struggle, he won’t have much value for long, so United are best served by striking now while the iron is still somewhat warm.
Finally, The Guardian does a nice little round-up of today’s paper talk, and in it they mention that United are supposedly closing in on Barcelona’s Ivan Rakitic for £48 million.
Paul M. Banks runs The Sports Bank.net, which is partnered with News Now. Banks, the author of “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry,” regularly appears on WGN CLTV and co-hosts the “Let’s Get Weird, Sports” podcast on SB Nation.
Banks, a former writer for NBC Chicago.com and Chicago Tribune.com, also contributes to Chicago Now. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram. The content of his cat’s Instagram account is unquestionably superior to his.