Everton could lose out in pursuit of Mata

The British media is reporting this morning that Manchester United are offering a player and cash deal to Juventus for star Paul Pogba. The player involved is said to be Juan Mata.

United under new manager Jose Mourinho have been desperately trying to get former player Pogba back from the Bianconeri, even going to the extent of offering the Italian club over a £100million for the midfielder who left on a free transfer a few years ago.

Meanwhile, no one in Greater Manchester has viewed the arrival of Mourinho at Old Trafford with greater trepidation than Juan Mata, who was deemed expendable at Chelsea by The Special One despite being named the Stamford Bridge side’s Player of the Season. The Spaniard had moved to United for £37.1m in January 2014 and has scored 26 goals in 104 appearances for the Red Devils.

Everton are looking to revamp their midfield, with Axel Witsel and Juan Mata being two of the biggest names linked with the side. The Witsel saga has so far been an up and down story with Napoli and the Blues engaging in a tug-of-war for the Belgian despite Everton offering to make him their highest paid player.

With La Liga competition pulling out in the race for Mata, it was looking like Everton were in pole position for the player’s signature, but now this move seems to have thrown a wrench in the works.

Juventus are still saying that Pogba is not for sale in which case Mata could still become available, but with Toffees manager Ronald Koeman desperate to complete some signings and get the preseason training started, it is also possible that the Blues could move on to other targets soon.

Mata’s fellow midfielder at United Morgan Schneiderlin has also been linked with a reunion with former manager Koeman, but that trail seems to have gone cold in recent days.