According to Mirror, Real Madrid are ready to move on from Paul Pogba and have set their sights on Donny van de Beek instead. In fact, they already have had a £60 million bid accepted by Ajax, and it is believed the Los Blancos are in negotiations with the player over personal terms.
“There are still negotiations. I would like things to be resolved as soon as possible”, van de Beek confirmed. Madrid moving on from Pogba could be a blessing in disguise for Zinedine Zidane and here are a few reasons why.
Pogba is not the most consistent midfielder
Despite his incredible performances in the Serie A with Juventus, Pogba has never really managed to live up to his full potential in the Premier League. And even though the Frenchman was one of Manchester United’s best players last season, his lack of consistency was enough to suggest that he may not be a success at the Bernabeu.
Pogba netted an impressive 13 goals in the league, more than any other central midfielder. But, if we take a deep dive into his performances, it’s fair to mention that around half of those goals have come from penalties. Also, the 26-year-old lost his form towards the backend of the campaign. He notably scored only two goals in the last 12 games of the season – a period that saw United slump to six defeats.
Too much competition
A move to Real Madrid will force Pogba to compete with the equally talented bunch of Toni Kroos, Luka Modric and Federico Valverde. Besides, he will also face stiff competition from the likes of Isco and Marco Asensio if he is to operate in an advanced midfield role.
All of these players are capable of fixing Madrid’s problems in midfield if they manage to integrate well to Zidane’s tactical system in this new season, thus nullifying the need of a new star midfielder in Pogba.
van de Beek is a better option
As mentioned earlier, Real Madrid are on the verge of signing van de Beek, who could turn out to be a more feasible option for the European giants. The Dutchman is a box to box midfielder and can provide a lot of good qualities into Real’s midfield unit.
What makes him such an appealing target for Los Blancos is his ability to score goals. He has, in fact, already netted two goals in this new season. And the fact that he doesn’t really rely on penalties to find the back of the net makes him an upgrade over Pogba.
Besides, at the age of 22, van de Beek has time on his side and should be a smart long-term investment for Real Madrid.
