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It really has been a season of two Pogbas, a pre-Mourinho man who looked like he was always dragging an anvil behind him on the pitch, and the one we're seeing now under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's reign that has dulled any memory of that anvil dragging midfielder.
In the Premier League, Pogba registered 3 goals and 3 assists under Mourinho this season in 14 games, a record that saw a drastic updraft under the tenure of now Manchester United's permanent manager. In the 15 games since Ole's tenure began, the French midfielder has 8 goals and 6 assists bringing his season's tally to 11 goals and 9 assists so far this season in the league (14 goals and 11 assists including FA Cup and Champions League).
All this upward movement in form and impactful performances from the World Cup Winner is drawing talk of admirers old and new flocking to whisk him away from Old Trafford. The most concerning talk is coming from Madrid as the big guns in the Spanish League have encountered a few problems of their own this season and seem to believe Paul Pogba may be a part of the answer to their issues.
As speculation around Pogba's future in Manchester gathers steam lets take a look at some potential reasons that he could leave for the Bernabeu in the summer.
Paul Pogba
The first and probably the strongest case to be made that the midfielder may soon call Madrid home is in his own behavior and statements. During the international break, when asked about the interest from Real Madrid, Pogba said, "Like I've always said, Real Madrid is a dream club for anyone. It is one of the biggest clubs in the world. Zidane is also there as a coach and its a dream for any kid, any football player. I'm happy at Manchester now... [sic] so, for now, I'm at Manchester - later - we don't know what the future holds."
Seems like the intent is there from Pogba in addition to the interest from Real Madrid to push the move through. Although, it may just be the midfielder ensuring that if things go south for him at Old Trafford he can always look to Madrid.
Zinedine Zidane
In a short time, Zinedine Zidane has earned success and glory at Real Madrid as coach that was unprecedented and largely unforeseen. His style of play and knack for bringing the best out of top players has worked for Los Merengues in more ways than one.
Let's skip the mention of the obvious trophy wins and fluid and exciting football he has brought to Madrid and move to the more relevant aspect of his draw for top players. He is idolized by many young players who have now made it to the top of their respective careers. The likes of Eden Hazard and Paul Pogba who are in a fairly large majority seduced by the lure of success at Real Madrid also now find themselves even more captivated by the idea of playing under Zidane.
More so, in Pogba's case, Zidane seems to be an open an admirer of the French midfielder. When specifically asked about him, the Real Madrid boss said, "I like him a lit, that's nothing new. I know him personally, he's a truly different player. There are very few players who can contribute to the team as much as he can, he's capable of anything... [sic] However, he's not my player. He's a Manchester United player and we need to respect that."
Given that both sides seem to want this move to happen, it's going to be a question of how long Manchester United can hold out. Perhaps its time for them to stock up on faulty fax machines.
Quality in Midfield
How can a 3-time consecutive Champions League winning team lack quality in midfield all of a sudden? It's the million dollar question that could trigger Real Madrid's spending in the summer as they've seen a standard dip from the likes of Kroos, Modric, Casemiro, and Isco has barely featured for them this season.
Of all the midfielders, the most glaring drop in quality has come from the German, Toni Kroos. Despite having a contract till 2022 with Real Madrid, the 29-year-old's future could be in doubt at the Bernabeu. His inaccuracies in passing are among the top issues Real need to address immediately and if Zizou decides that its time to replace Kroos, they will have an option in Pogba to fill the void.
Though Kroos may not be the only midfielder to blame, he certainly is the one being linked to a move away from Madrid. If even Modric decides to move as he supposedly considered in the summer, then Real will push harder for an overhaul.
Gareth Bale - The Overhaul
With Gareth Bale's future at Real Madrid coming under intense scrutiny, it seems like neither the player nor the club would be opposed to a move away from Spain for the Welshman.
Manchester United have been linked with him in the past as well, especially under Jose Mourinho. If they were in a situation where Pogba were to become a wantaway player, they may find a perfect makeweight in Bale who comes with proven pedigree in the Premier League.
There seems a distinct possibility that the Real Madrid squad will be dissected and reconstructed in the summer owing to an extremely poor campaign they've had this time around and Bale may be on the chopping block when summer comes around. Surely there will be more than one taker for the pacy forward, but given the commonalities and interest shown by the parties involved, this could be a likely outcome.
Mino Raiola
Real Madrid and Paul Pogba's agent Mino Raiola have chequered past. The relationship between Real Madrid President Florentino Perez and the agent is especially strained and it's rumored that Zidane asked for Pogba to be signed in the summer of 2016 but the move fell through because of their poor regard for each other and the midfielder moved to Manchester United instead.
This time though, Perez seems to have made some promises to the returning head coach and if Pogba is on his wishlist again, then perhaps the pendulum could swing the other way.
Of course, there are figures of around 150 million euros being touted for the Manchester United man with Raiola set to bag a large chunk of it if the move does happen, but he will have to make peace with the Madrid camp for it to go through.
