Manchester United star Paul Pogba reportedly wanted to sign a new deal but was turned down by the club, which is news that will enrage fans.
The former Juventus man’s current deal runs out next summer and will be able to negotiate with foreign clubs just two months from now.
According to the Daily Mail, United opted to ignore the opportunity to extend Pogba’s stay back in the summer of 2019 despite Pogba approaching the club regarding the situation.
It’s understood the talented Frenchman’s camp are frustrated over claims he’s holding the club to ransom and feel everything being played out publicly in order to make him look bad.
They reportedly insist Pogba never wanted to become a free agent and to this day is still open to signing a new deal.
It’s understood clubs were keen on his signature in 2019 but he ignored their interest and wanted to sign an extension, only for the Red Devils to ignore his plea and trigger the 12-month option on his existing deal.
Since then the club have only made one formal offer earlier this summer but Pogba told them he didn’t want to sign this deal and wants them to make another offer.
It’s said as of now, Manchester United have failed to make a second offer, leaving him confused as to why he’s being painted as the villain.
The report from the Mail certainly reads as a pro-Pogba report but regardless of which side is better able to spin a story, there are unrefutable facts.
One of those is United, for whatever reason, chose not to extend the sensational midfielder’s contract back in 2019, when he had a year left to his deal, instead choosing to trigger the extension and buy themselves some time.
Unfortunately with players as big as Pogba, delaying contracts is never a good thing and a lot can happen in two years.
Once again the club has allowed their poor strategy regarding contracts to fail them and the possibility he leaves for free again is very real because of their incompetence.
A well-structured club allows plenty of time for contract negotiations in order to make multiple offers before both parties compromise and settle on a deal.
It seems United got complacent with Pogba and felt their trigger option safeguarded them but instead all it did was cause them even more of a mess.