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Paper Round: Jose Mourinho will let Pogba leave United, Pep Guardiola set for new deal at City

Michael Hincks

Updated 17/04/2018 at 06:43 GMT

Tuesday’s Paper Round sees Paul Pogba on the cusp of leaving Manchester United, with City boss Pep Guardiola set for a new deal...

Paul Pogba with Pep Guardiola

Image credit: Getty Images

Pogba to lead United exodus

Jose Mourinho is set to let Paul Pogba leave Manchester United this summer as part of a mass clear-out, report the Mail. The Portuguese manager is said to have run out of patience with the £89mllion man after their humiliating 1-0 home defeat to West Brom, which in turn handed Man City the Premier League title. Anthony Martial, Matteo Darmian and Daley Blind are also set to be offloaded.
Paper Round’s view: With no trophy to boast of so far this season, Mourinho might be around for too much longer at Manchester United so he clearly believes a huge shake-up is required to close the gap with bitter rivals Manchester City. This is a huge risk though. Despite Pogba under-performing, he is clearly still a world-class player when on song and Mourinho has a history of letting top talent go, only to see them flourish elsewhere. De Bruyne, Salah, anyone?
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One more year

A number of papers, including the Times and Daily Mail, are reporting that Pep Guardiola is set to pen a one-year contract extension at Manchester City after steering them to Premier League glory. It would take his stay at the Etihad Stadium to 2020, matching the four-year stint he had with Barcelona.
Paper Round’s view: Not one for massive commitment, the prospect of extending his contract by just one year will only leave the door open for questions surrounding his long-term commitment. Having jumped the Barcelona and Bayern Munich ship relatively quickly – given the success of both tenures – it would be no surprise to see Guardiola seek out a new project as we welcome a new decade.
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£200m for City in summer

In the meantime, Guardiola will have £200m to spend on reinvestment this summer, the Mirror reports. Their back-page splash features Leicester winger Riyad Mahrez – the player they tried and failed to sign at the 11th hour in January – while midfielders Jorginho and Fred are mooted as other targets as City pursue Champions League glory.
Paper Round’s view: Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino said he did not fear this was the start of a City dynasty, but the prospect of them strengthening this side significantly in the summer is frightening. The focus may well switch to Europe, but a title defence should not be underestimated. No team has managed to do so since Fergie’s United won three in a row from 2007 to 2009 – surely that will be playing on Pep’s mind this summer.
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Dembele out at Spurs

Tottenham are prepared to sell midfielder Mousa Dembele this summer, according to the Mirror. The Belgian – a fan favourite at Spurs – will have 12 months left on his contract come summer, but has held off on talks of an extension. Though Spurs are reportedly reluctant to see the 30-year-old go, they may be forced to sell if talks aren’t positive. As a result, Barcelona’s Andre Gomes and Atalanta’s Bryan Cristante have been linked with a move to Tottenham.
Paper Round’s view: Dembele is outstanding and one of the best in the world in his position. And no, I’m not a Spurs fan… It looks as though their rigid wage structure could see another player head for the exit door (and join Toby Alderweireld it would seem). Time to rethink, no?
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