Paul Pogba has been invited back to Juventus by Blaise Matuidi, with a current Bianconeri star eager to see the Manchester United midfielder join Cristiano Ronaldo in Turin. A summer transfer for the 25-year-old has been mooted, with speculation having built steadily towards the end of the 2017-18 campaign. With Pogba having seen his form and mentality questioned during a testing season at Old Trafford, various landing spots were touted for a man yet to truly convince under Jose Mourinho.
A second spell at Juve has been mentioned just two years on from an £89 million ($118m) exit. Pogba is, however, now a World Cup winner, with his efforts having helped France to global glory at Russia 2018. He was on target in a 4-2 final triumph over Croatia, having starred throughout the competition after being granted the freedom by his country which is often denied him at club level.
United would be reluctant to part with a man buoyed by the biggest prize in football, with more now expected of him in 2018-19, but Matuidi would still like to see a fellow countryman back in Italy. As France revelled in their World Cup win on Sunday, Pogba took to Instagram as he celebrated with his team-mates. Matuidi was among those to get in on the act, with the former Paris Saint-Germain midfielder telling a jubilant colleague:
Matuidi e Pogba 😍😍 #pogback #juventus pic.twitter.com/2QYr93KEEB
— Nathan Abela (@NathanAbela) July 15, 2018
“Remember to come to Juventus.” Pogba jokingly replied by saying “Ooh, the Old Lady, the Old Lady”, with spirits running high inside the French camp. Any approach from Juve to bring Pogba back onto their books this summer appears unlikely, with their recruitment focus currently locked on other targets.