ZINEDINE ZIDANE is ready to gazump Manchester United’s world-record bid for Paul Pogba.
The Real Madrid boss has rolled out the welcome mat for the Juventus midfielder who has made no secret he would prefer a move to the Bernabeu and that France legend Zidane has always been his idol.
Zidane upped the stakes in the summer’s biggest transfer battle when he said: “I don’t know if he will come. Until August 31 [when the transfer window closes] anything can happen.
“Everyone is interested in Pogba. He is a great footballer and when you are Madrid you always want the best players.
“But now he is not a Real Madrid player, he is a Juventus player so I can’t say anything more.”
Jose Mourinho had made no secret that Pogba is his No.1 target as he looks for the box-to-box, dynamic midfielder he believes United need to mount a Premier League title bid.
United are understood to be ready to offer Juve a world-record fee but are well aware that if a bid from Real is a possibility, Pogba will be in no rush to commit to a return to a club he left controversially as a free agent four years ago after turning down a contract from Sir Alex Ferguson.
Mourinho is keen to complete his summer transfer business by making Pogba his fourth and final purchase. But with the new season only a couple of weeks away he is running out of patience and warned last week he has “other players who fit the profile”. They are understood to be Chelsea’s Nemanja Matic and Paris Saint-Germain’s Blase Matuidi.
The good news for Mourinho is that one of his three signings, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, will finally train with his new team-mates for the first time on Friday ahead of his expected debut in his native Sweden at the weekend.
Mourinho left the 34-year-old striker out of United’s squad for their recent tour to China to give him an extended break after the Euros.
But Ibrahimovic worked on his fitness during his holiday in the USA and for the past three days has been following a conditioning programme tailored for him by Mourinho and his fitness coaches.
He has not kicked a ball since Sweden’s exit from the Euros on June 22 but Mourinho trusts him to be in good enough shape to play some part of the friendly against Galatasaray in Gothenburg on Saturday.
“The best suits are suits by measure – you go for a size that fits you,” said Mourinho as he explained why Ibrahimvoic’s preparations have been different to the other United players. “Same for players. No two players are the same.
“The decision on Zlatan is the consequence of many hours of study. He was out [of the Euros] one match before the English guys. The body and mind is different.
“Players prepare in a different way. We’re trying to do suits by measure and to be perfect for the person.”
Bastian Schweinsteiger, Anthony Martial, Morgan Schneiderlin and Marouane Fellaini, who all reached the later stages of the Euros, will also return for pre-season on Friday to give Mourinho a full complement of players to work with for the first time in nearly a month.
Zidane upped the stakes in the summer’s biggest transfer battle when he said: “I don’t know if he will come. Until August 31 [when the transfer window closes] anything can happen.
“Everyone is interested in Pogba. He is a great footballer and when you are Madrid you always want the best players.
“But now he is not a Real Madrid player, he is a Juventus player so I can’t say anything more.”
Jose Mourinho had made no secret that Pogba is his No.1 target as he looks for the box-to-box, dynamic midfielder he believes United need to mount a Premier League title bid.
United are understood to be ready to offer Juve a world-record fee but are well aware that if a bid from Real is a possibility, Pogba will be in no rush to commit to a return to a club he left controversially as a free agent four years ago after turning down a contract from Sir Alex Ferguson.
The good news for Mourinho is that one of his three signings, Zlatan Ibrahimovic, will finally train with his new team-mates for the first time on Friday ahead of his expected debut in his native Sweden at the weekend.
Mourinho left the 34-year-old striker out of United’s squad for their recent tour to China to give him an extended break after the Euros.
But Ibrahimovic worked on his fitness during his holiday in the USA and for the past three days has been following a conditioning programme tailored for him by Mourinho and his fitness coaches.
He has not kicked a ball since Sweden’s exit from the Euros on June 22 but Mourinho trusts him to be in good enough shape to play some part of the friendly against Galatasaray in Gothenburg on Saturday.
“The best suits are suits by measure – you go for a size that fits you,” said Mourinho as he explained why Ibrahimvoic’s preparations have been different to the other United players. “Same for players. No two players are the same.
“The decision on Zlatan is the consequence of many hours of study. He was out [of the Euros] one match before the English guys. The body and mind is different.
“Players prepare in a different way. We’re trying to do suits by measure and to be perfect for the person.”
Bastian Schweinsteiger, Anthony Martial, Morgan Schneiderlin and Marouane Fellaini, who all reached the later stages of the Euros, will also return for pre-season on Friday to give Mourinho a full complement of players to work with for the first time in nearly a month.
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