Paul Pogba's alleged Man Utd wage demands
By Tom Gott
Agent Mino Raiola is claimed to be chasing a whopping £400,000-a-week salary from Manchester United for midfielder Paul Pogba to sign a new contract at Old Trafford.
The 28-year-old will enter the final year of his contract this summer and United do not have a 12-month extension option to trigger, having been forced to use it last year when an exit for Pogba felt almost certain.
Since then, Pogba's happiness has returned at United, who are threatening to challenge Manchester City for the Premier League title next season. Because of their improvement, the idea of the Frenchman signing a new contract is back on the table.
Pogba is open to staying at United, but according to the Mirror, talks are proving challenging because of Raiola, who is seeking an enormous £400,000-a-week salary for his client.
United, whose relationship with Raiola is frosty enough as it is, have vowed that they will not be held to ransom by the agent, with those higher up in the boardroom warning manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer that such demands may be out of United's reach.
With the COVID-19 impact hitting United's finances hard, club officials are keen to consider all their options, particularly as they still hope to spend big in the transfer market to give the squad some much-needed boosts in the title race.
90min understands United are hoping to strike a £75m deal for Borussia Dortmund winger Jadon Sancho before the European Championships get underway, with another midfielder and a centre-back both on United's shopping list too.
With that kind of business on the table, United are reluctant to meet Pogba's £400,000-a-week demands, especially given the fact most of his suitors are not in a position to hand him that kind of money either.
Real Madrid, Barcelona and Juventus all find themselves in financial turmoil, and usual suspects Paris Saint-Germain are thought to be the only team who could afford that kind of money on top of a hefty transfer fee.
United do not believe they need to give in to Raiola's demands, but there are obvious concerns over the idea of turning the agent down and risking allowing Pogba to run down his contract.
Some in the boardroom are wary of saying no to Raiola, who could encourage Pogba to let his contract expire and hit the free market, which would allow most of the aforementioned suitors time to find a way to afford his wages.