Arsenal are planning an audacious £20 million bid to land the former Manchester United youngster Paul Pogba, who has flourished during his time at Juventus, according to reports in Telegraph.
The 20 year-old central midfielder moved to Juventus last summer after failing to agree terms on a new contract at Old Trafford, is said to have been a long-term target for Gunners boss Arsene Wenger.
The Gunners’ midfield and defensive frailties were exposed on Saturday by Aston Villa, who recorded a shock 3-1 victory at the Emirates Stadium on the opening day of the 2013/14 Premier League season. Paul Pogba’s France international teammate Yohan Cabaye is also thought to have been the subject of a rejected £10m bid from Arsenal on Monday.
Pogba is an athletic, young French midfielder struggling for game time in Serie-A. The last time Wenger was able to recruit one of those, he became one of Arsenal’s greatest ever players namely Patrick Vieira. His physique is complemented by his technique. Pogba has poise to match his power. He also has an eye for a pass and an outstanding shot, as the spectacular goals he scored last season.
Since selling Alex Song, Arsenal have lacked a physical presence in the midfield. Signing Pogba would immediately provide them with the steel necessary to allow their creative talents, including Wilshere to flourish. Pogba’s excellent stamina allows him to cover enormous amounts of ground in any one game, making him ideal to take over Aaron Ramsey’s role as the all-action midfielder supporting both the defensive efforts of Arteta and the creative talents of Wilshere.
He’d be an excellent addition to the Arsenal squad if they managed to pull it off, with his athletic presence in midfield exactly what we’re missing at the minute. We should have to wait and see if any thing materializes from this bid but it looks unlikely that Juventus will let go of their prized asset. Plus it seems hard to believe he would leave the Turin outfit for an Arsenal side in turmoil.
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The Gunners have endured a frustrating summer so far with boss Arsene Wenger missing out on a number of high profile targets so far. The misery has further escalated as the club have suffered a number of injuries to key first team players with midfielder Mikel Arteta and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain the latest names to be ruled out of action.
It seems like Arsenal are finally making some moves in the transfer market with a bid for Cabaye which was confirmed by Newcastle manager Pardew and now reported bid for Pogba. The Villa defeat coupled with a string of injuries to first team players seems to have convinced the board that we need signings to compete at the highest level. But it’s hard to guess as to why we haven’t done this earlier in the summer because it will be hard to thrash out deals this late in the window.
But it’s never too late isn’t it. What say Gooners?
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