Pogba is finished at Manchester United! His place should be taken by de Jong, for whom Barcelona have already agreed a replacement

Paul Pogba quits Manchester United for the second time in his career. What everyone has been expecting for a long time has finally come true and it will very likely set off a merry-go-round of transfers. So who all will be affected by the French midfielder’s departure from Old Trafford?

When Pogba transferred to Manchester United from Juventus for €105 million in the summer of 2016, it was a record amount at the time. The Red Devils were set to return to the top in the following years and usurp back what was theirs for many years under Sir Alex Ferguson.

But that didn’t happen and, apart from a few minor successes, the fans at Old Trafford certainly had no reason to celebrate. The French midfielder himself gradually faded, often dogged by injuries, and after the arrival of Erik ten Hag his fate in Manchester was sealed for good.

Pogba’s departure, however, is likely to set off a major reshuffle as the Dutch coach will no doubt want to bring in a replacement for the 2018 World Champion. That should be his former charge Frenkie de Jong, who has settled in Barcelona after leaving Ajax.

However, the Catalan club is in a very difficult financial crisis and will have to sell to get the necessary money for new players. Moreover, according to Fabrizio Romano, Xavi has a clear plan, which is the arrival of the pair of Christensen and Kessié. According to the Italian journalist, both of them are confirmations, they just need to make room for them due to financial fair play.

And if there is someone both replaceable and monetisable at Barcelona, it will probably be de Jong, who will pay the price for the very strong upcoming generation of midfielders from La Masia that Xavi will most likely prefer.

The Dutch midfielder has let it be known several times that he would like to stay in Catalonia, but the current state of Barcelona is really bad and so they don’t really have many opportunities to choose from.

As for Kessié, he has been an absolutely key player for AC Milan in the first two or so seasons. After that, however, his form gradually declined, but we can’t deny him his combativeness and defensive work in the middle of the pitch. Which was one of the aspects that helped the Rossoneri win the Scudetto after 11 long years.

In Milan, however, he did not agree on new terms of his contract, so he announced his definitive end in the red and black jersey some time ago.

Source: Fabrizio Romano, Transfermarkt, Sky Sports