Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu neither confirmed nor denied reports that the club is preparing to sign Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba.
Mundo Deportivo claim Pogba, who is contracted to United until June 2021, wants to leave Old Trafford this summer because of a strained relationship with coach Jose Mourinho.
According to the Barcelona-based publication, Barca, who are in contact with Pogba’s agent, Mino Raiola, will be patient and try to sign the France international before the transfer window ends.
“I never speak about [specific] names, you know it,” Bartomeu told Spanish TV station TVE after Barca’s 2-1 win over Sevilla in the Spanish Supercup on Sunday night, when asked about Pogba.
“Furthermore, there is respect for other clubs. The truth is that there are 20 days remaining in the transfer window. I do not say it for this player [Pogba].
“This player is in his team and playing a competition. There are still 20 days left, we will see which players can leave and which players can come. We’ll see.
“It is better you ask about the topic of players to [Barca technical director Eric] Abidal, [assistant technical director Ramon] Planes or [sporting manager] Pep Segura. We still have days remaining in the market to take action if needed.”
The La Liga and Copa del Rey champions have made five summer signings in Arturo Vidal, Malcom, Clement Lenglet, Arthur and Moussa Wague.
Pogba, 25, wore the captain’s armband and scored in United’s Premier League season-opening 2-1 win over Leicester City at the weekend.
A World Cup winner this summer with France, Pogba did not kill speculation regarding his future when stating after Saturday’s game: “There are things that I cannot say, otherwise I will get fined.”
United paid Juventus €105 million (£89.3m) to acquire Pogba two years ago.
Primarily a central midfielder, although he is also capable of playing on the left, in a holding role, as a deep-lying playmaker, in a box-to-box role, or even as an attacking midfielder,Pogba has been described by his club Manchester United as a “powerful, skilful, and creative” player who has “an eye for goal and a penchant for the spectacular.”
In Italy, he gained the nicknames Il Polpo Paul (“Paul the Octopus”) for his long legs that look like tentacles during tackling or running and “Pogboom” for his explosive playing style and energy on the pitch.
A large, quick, hard-working and physically strong player, he excels in the air, and is also known for his stamina, as well as his powerful and accurate striking ability from distance; he has also drawn praise for his finesse, technique, flair, and dribbling skills.
His characteristics and playing role in midfield have led him to be compared with former France international Patrick Vieira.
During his final season with Juventus, Pogba was deployed in a more advanced and creative midfield role rather than in his usual box-to-box role,which saw him gain more time on the ball, and he excelled as the team’s main playmaker, due to his vision, and passing range; his performances in this role saw him develop from a promising youngster into one of the best and most complete midfielders in the world. Upon Pogba’s departure from Juventus in 2016, his former teammate Gianluigi Buffon compared him to French former playmakers Michel Platini and Zinedine Zidane, and also praised his ability, leadership, work-rate and attitude, both on the pitch and in training, stating that he “..is a tremendous warrior on the pitch but also has so much talent. His control of the ball and the way he can swiftly change the play from defence to attack is special.