There are no huge revelations, here; only confirmations. Paul Pogba, Toni Kroos, and Arturo Vidal, three midfielders connected with Manchester United throughout the 2013-14 season, were being extensively scouted by David Moyes during his time with the Red Devils.
At least, that’s what Moyes says. Writing for The Sunday Times (as reported by ESPN), the departed manager confirmed he planned to monitor the trio as well as two others at this summer’s World Cup.
Pogba, however, already had a prohibitively high price put on him. The $100 million transfer fee Juventus was asking looks like one part negotiating stance, another part evaluation, and a final part reflection of Pogba’s ultimately tumultuous time as a youth player in United’s system.
Since Louis van Gaal’s appointment as Moyes’s successor, United has reportedly moved away from Kross, too, though the Dutch manager remains a fan of Vidal.
From ESPN’s UK site:“If it were possible, I would have tried to bring him [Pogba] to Manchester United,” he wrote in The Sunday Times’ World Cup supplement ...
And the Scot wrote: “It is no secret that I had put a lot of groundwork into signing [Kroos] for Manchester United. What I like about Kroos is that he plays the ball to penetrate, he doesn’t do passing for passing’s sake.”
Van Gaal is reportedly interested in Vidal, however, telling reporters: "... I always wanted to buy Vidal when he was at Bayer Leverkusen but he went to Juventus.”
Again, this is less news than confirmation. Those lofty targets Manchester United’s been linked to for 10 months? It was more than tabloid gossip. David Moyes was really hoping to bring a new star into United’s midfield.
Van Gaal will do the same, but it’s unlikely to be Pogba. Kroos has basically been ruled out. Vidal, however, may be a perfect if expensive fit.
With Pogba having emerged at Juventus and the Chilean just turning 27 years old, now may be the best time for Juve to cash in on its star, if they’re ever going to cash in at all.