How Will Manchester United Deal With The Loss of Paul Pogba?

After three years at Manchester United, it appears that Paul Pogba's time in red is coming to an end. Transfer rumors linking him to Real Madrid and Juventus are circulating in the same way they did when he made his triumphant Manchester return in 2016. Per WhoScored, this past season Pogba led all United players in goals, assists, passes, key passes per game, dribbles per game, and shots per game. This is a player who was deployed primarily as a central midfielder leading his club in all major offensive categories. He does take penalties for United, scoring 7 of 10 this season in the Premier League, which did inflate his goal total but doesn't take away from his other statistics.

However, it still shows weakness in a club when the leading scorer is a central midfielder, especially when the club brought in striker Romelu Lukaku for 75 million euros in 2017 and has young English star Marcus Rashford as another option up the middle. United also missed out on the Champions League by finishing in 6th place this season- qualifying only for the Europa League. Pogba led France to a World Cup and is undoubtedly a Champions League quality player; he won't want to miss out on Europe's most prestigious domestic competition. Per the Guardian, Pogba spoke to reporters in Tokyo and said that he thinks "it could be a good time to have a new challenge somewhere else." In addition to all of this, a video circulated at the end of the season that showed a United fan screaming at Pogba- telling him he was terrible, a waste of money, and all the rest. Pogba, who everyone in football (even Jose Mourinho) has said is very mature, kept his composure in the face of the abuse.

Why wouldn't he want to leave?

If United have to sell Pogba, they need to make the most of it. The Express states that Manchester United have put a 140 euro price tag on Pogba. If Pogba is sold, this money will need to be reinvested. Manchester United have depth up top and have just brought in another offensive player by buying young winger Daniel James from Swansea. Their real needs lie in strengthening their midfield and defense, and the following list provides some options for how the Reds and Ed Woodward could do just that.

1. A player + cash swap

Without Pogba, and with Ander Herrera leaving for Paris Saint Germain on a free, Manchester United's midfield is not as strong as it needs to be. Although he began to come around towards the end of the season, Fred underachieved in his first season in red. Nemanja Matic is slowing down and needs support in defensive midfield. Scott McTominay and Andreas Pereira both showed flashes of quality this season; even so, they are 22 and 23, respectively, and are unlikely to be ready to start in the Premier League every week. Reinforcements in midfield are needed.

In a potential swap with Juventus, United could look to add another young midfielder to their squad. Uruguayan Rodrigo Bentancur is only 21 years old and made 21 appearances for Juventus this season. Bentancur is a strong defensive midfielder who does a good job of moving the ball up the pitch from the midfield. Transfermarkt rates his current transfer value as 35 million euros - a swap deal of Pogba for Bentancur and €90 million would leave United with plenty of money to continue improving their team and bring one of the best midfielders in the world to Juventus. Emre Can would be another option, and the 24-year-old defensive midfielder could add more steel to the midfield while still good in possession. One thing that could dissuade United, however, is that Can moved to Juventus just a year ago from Liverpool. It may be hard to pry him away from his new home, especially to play for a team that finished 4 spots below his old club.

United's midfield isn't the only source of the team's problems. The United defense needs strengthening as well. Luke Shaw and Victor Lindelof both improved significantly over the course of the 2018-19 season, becoming more consistent and earning playing time in important games for United. Diogo Dalot, the 20-year-old Portuguese right-back whose signing came out of the blue when he joined United from Porto in July of 2018, also impressed and will be expected to keep improving in the seasons to come. However, that's where the positives end for United. Ashley Young and Antonio Valencia are too old, Eric Bailly is too inconsistent, and Phil Jones, Chris Smalling, Marcos Rojo, and Matteo Darmian are simply not good enough to play regularly for a Champions League side- which Manchester United expect to be.

Juventus has a couple of defenders who United could look for in a swap deal. Daniele Rugani is still only 24 and is an excellent passer out of the back, something that United lack. That being said, he hasn't improved much in past seasons and hasn't met expectations since being touted as the next Leonardo Bonucci after his transfer from Empoli in 2015. Another Juventus player United could target is right back Joao Cancelo. The swashbuckling Portuguese defender is excellent going forward and was a rock for Juventus this season. United will have to compete with cross-city rivals Manchester City for his signature, however, as the Premier League Champions have bid €50 million according to Goal Magazine.

Madrid is less likely to agree to a swap move than Juventus. None of the starting 3 midfielders are likely to move- Modric is a reigning Ballon d'Or winner and Tony Kroos is a German international; neither will want to move to a club that won't be playing in the Champions League, and Casemiro is invaluable to Madrid. A majority of Madrid defenders are also in their primes and will be reluctant to leave. Consequently, a strategy that United could use to take advantage of this would be to target quality young players looking for more playing time.

Marcos Llorente wouldn't be a direct replacement for Pogba and it shouldn't be expected of him. The 24-year-old Spaniard appeared 15 times in all competitions for Madrid and plays at the base of midfield, making tackles and spraying long balls to the wings. Jesus Vallejo is another very highly regarded prospect, and the 22-year-old center back appeared only 7 times for Madrid and is likely looking for a larger role. A place at United could allow him to grow into a world-class central defender.

2. Reinvesting the "Pogba Money" into multiple players.

Selling Pogba for €140 million would likely double the size of Manchester United's already gigantic transfer fund. This would allow United to purchase several players to solve different issues within the squad. Two players that the Reds have been actively pursuing already are Crystal Palace right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Leicester and England center back Harry Maguire. Wan-Bissaka had a breakout season for the Eagles and proved himself to be a rock defensively, leading Crystal Palace in tackles per game, interceptions per game, and making 35 appearances in the Premier League. United are reportedly closing in on a €50 million deal for the 21-year-old and it appears to be an excellent piece of business. Maguire, an England international just entering the prime of his career at age 26, would not come quite as cheap. Reportedly available for €80 million, the colossal center back would step into the starting 11 and would undoubtedly provide United with a strong and composed presence at the back, something the team lacked this past season.

However, these signings wouldn't actually fill the gap left by Pogba's departure. That would require at least 1 or 2 midfielders. One that United have been linked to is Newcastle United's, Sean Longstaff. The 21-year-old English midfielder unexpectedly broke into Newcastle's starting 11 and bossed the midfield, opening up defenses with cross-field balls and receiving and moving the ball in midfield with complete confidence. Unfortunately, Longstaff suffered a knee injury after just 9 appearances, but so impressive were his displays that Manchester United are interested.

A teammate of potential signing Maguire that could also make the switch to Manchester is Youri Tielemans. Playing primarily as a deep-lying central midfielder, the Belgian excelled for Leicester after joining them on loan from Monaco in January. United could use a passer of Tielemans' talent to break down defensive blocks and high presses in years to come.

Two excellent, albeit expensive, options that the Manchester United board could look at are Giovani Lo Celso and Tanguy Ndombele. Lo Celso prefers to play further forward of the two and starred at Real Betis in a midfield role this season. The 23-year-old Argentinian is an evasive dribbler who drops into pockets of space between the lines to open up space for teammates. Ndombele, who has plied his trade for Lyon since 2017, has a special ability to run with the ball from deep and play a pass to an open teammate. Both would undoubtedly be an improvement over any of the players currently in the United midfield. The cost, however, would be high. Lo Celso is expected to cost €55 million and Ndombele, a hot commodity, will likely come at a cost of almost €75 million and United will face competition from across Europe.

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One last option and one that would come as a bit of a surprise would be Stanislav Lobotka. The 24-year-old central midfielder is similar in stature to Xherdan Shaqiri and is excellent at breaking a press, a valuable skill in a league where top teams like Manchester City and Liverpool press high up the pitch. Lobotka is strong enough to hold off defenders and can dribble or pass his way out of trouble. He would also likely be the cheapest option out of this list of players, likely to cost about €30 million from the Spanish club, Celta Vigo.

Manchester United are likely to lose their star man- will they be able to cope with the loss of Paul Pogba? The options above could provide a way to deal with the loss of a star player and potentially even improve. Even so, the Manchester United board is surely looking at even more options and it'll be exciting to see if United can restore itself to its former glory.