Jose Mourinho will turn his attention to Newcastle United midfielder Moussa Sissoko if Manchester United fail to sign Paul Pogba from Juventus, according to media reports in France.
Mourinho, 53, previously said he had identified four players he wanted United to sign to help the club return to Premier League title challengers. With defender Eric Bailly signing from Villarreal, midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan arriving from Borussia Dortmund, and striker Zlatan Ibarhimovic moving on a free transfer, the fourth target is widely thought to be Juventus midfielder Pogba.
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Pogba, 23, left United for Juventus in 2012 after refusing to sign a new contract, and it will take a world record fee, thought to be in the region of £100 million (Dh484.6m), for the France international to make the return to Old Trafford.
While United remain confident of completing a deal for Pogba, Le 10 Sport are reporting that Mourinho is making a contingency plan and will go after Pogba's France teammate Sissoko if the move fails to materialise.
Sissoko is expected to leave Newcastle following their demotion to the Championship, with the club reportedly ready to listen to offers of £20m for the midfielder.
Indeed, should United complete a deal for Pogba, Le 10 Sport have claimed Juventus are targeting Sissoko as his replacement.
So it seems Sissoko’s future could be intrinsically linked to Pogba’s.
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