Manchester United are closing in on Paul Pogba’s €60m replacement, with Real Madrid ditching their interest in a Tottenham ace to land the Frenchman – all according to Tuesday’s European papers.
UNITED STEP UP RAKITIC BID AS REAL DITCH ERIKSEN IN FAVOUR OF POGBA MOVE
Manchester United have reportedly stepped up their interest in bringing Barcelona midfielder Ivan Rakitic to Old Trafford this summer.
The Croatia international has been linked with the Red Devils for some time, but now Sport claims that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men have been in contact with the 31-year-old – who would be allowed to move on at the right price.
Rakitic, who is also wanted by Inter Milan, is being viewed as the perfect replacement for Paul Pogba – with reports on Tuesday claiming that Real Madrid have ditched their interest in Christian Eriksen and are solely focused on landing the United star.
Rakitic is being viewed as a major upgrade on Nemanja Matic and Fred in United’s engine room and Don Balon claims that a deal could be done for around €60million.
As for Pogba, reports claim that Real boss Zinedine Zidane has put all his eggs in one basket and wants the Red Devils ace to become the Bernabeu’s new attacking central midfielder – a role that had been earmarked for Eriksen.
The Dane, who will be out of contract at Tottenham next summer, has spoken of his desire to take up a fresh challenge this summer – prompting Real and French giants PSG to show significant interest.
However, Marca nows claims that Zidane has ruled out a move for Eriksen, who was not at his best for Spurs last season and had a poor Champions League final when he could have really showcased his talents.
It goes on to add that Real will bid £133.5m for Pogba and will offer him around £290,000-a-week – and while that would represent a wage cut, it is thought that would be enough to lure the 26-year-old to Spain.
Real have already signed Eden Hazard, Luka Jovic and Eder Militao this summer, as they look to end Barca’s LaLiga dominance.
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AND THE REST
Arsenal’s £43m raid for Sampdoria duo Joachim Andersen and Dennis Praet has been rejected (Gazzetta dello Sport)
PSG forward Neymar has told the club he is not happy in the French capital, which has annoyed president Nasser Al Khelaifi and other senior figures at the club (Sport)
Real Madrid forward James Rodriguez is very open to joining Napoli in the summer (Il Corriere dello Sport)
Julian Draxler insists he has no plans to leave PSG this summer, amid links to Tottenham (Bild)
Former Napoli boss Rafa Benitez is being linked with a shock return to Chelsea, which would in turn release Maurizio Sarri to Juventus (Tuttosport)
Valencia want to sign Newcastle United striker Ayoze Perez this summer (Cadena Cope)
Real Madrid goalkeeper Keylor Navas will leave this summer after Zinedine Zidane settled on Thibaut Courtois to be his No 1 next term (AS)
Napoli are ready to offer €70m for Inter attacker Mauro Icardi and pay him €7m per year, plus €2m in bonuses (Gazzetta dello Sport)
Former Roma midfielder Daniele De Rossi has reportedly agreed to join MLS side Los Angeles FC (Football Italia)
AC Milan are considering a surprise move for Arsenal midfielder Lucas Torreira (Tuttomercatoweb)
Juventus will allow Cristian Romero to spend the 2019-20 campaign on loan at Genoa, despite spending £26m on the defender
AC Milan are pondering a move for Genoa striker Christian Kouame (Calciomercato)
Real Madrid are keen on a deal for Benfica defender and Portugal international Ruben Dias (Diario Sport)
Torino President Urbano Cairo has announced that his club have signed full-back Ola Aina from Chelsea on a permanent basis for €10m (Football Italia)
Fiorentina have announced that technical director Pantaleo Corvino has left the club by mutual consent (Football Italia)
The post Euro Paper Talk: Man Utd close in on €60m midfield kingpin as star’s exit looms; Eriksen lift for Spurs appeared first on teamtalk.com.
