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Wednesday's papers: Paul Pogba, Jadon Sancho, Matthijs de Ligt

Manchester United have made a play for Matthijs de Ligt before and failed, but a potential player swap could change things.

What the papers say

Manchester United might use Paul Pogba, 27, as bait to sign Matthijs de Ligt from Juventus. The Holland international has not impressed since signing with the Italian giants last summer for £67.5million from Ajax. The Daily Star reports the centre-back, 20, has started just 15 Serie A matches amid knee and shoulder injuries, making him a prospect for United as they look to offload Pogba to his desired destination of Turin and recruit some young talent.

The only serious contenders for the signature of England international Jadon Sancho are United and Chelsea, according to the Daily Mirror. Liverpool had been rumoured to be interested in the Borussia Dortmund winger, but the paper reports the Merseysiders "are said by insiders to not even be monitoring the situation". Both the Blues and United have contacted the 20-year-old's representatives, but neither is yet willing to pay almost £100m to secure his signature.

Manchester United v Southampton – Premier League – Old Trafford
Alexis Sanchez is likely to return to Manchester United if the Serie A season is cancelled (Martin Rickett/PA)

Old Trafford bosses will be overjoyed if can secure Sancho, but likely less enthused about having to pay Alexis Sanchez a £1.1m loyalty payment when he returns in the summer. The Chile forward, who has also played for Arsenal and Barcelona, has had a less than stellar loan spell at Inter Milan, scoring just one goal in 15 appearances since August and leading the Italians to pass on signing him. If, as expected, the Serie A season is cancelled the 31-year-old will return to Manchester with two years remaining on his contract and United forced to make the loyalty payment.

Social media round-up

— The Sun Football ⚽ (@TheSunFootball) April 1, 2020

Players to watch

Gareth Bale: 90min.com reports Everton are planning to sign the 30-year-old Real Madrid forward and his Wales teammate Aaron Ramsey, 29, from Juventus.

Portugal v Netherlands – Nations League – Final – Estadio do Dragao
Cristiano Ronaldo may not be staying in Turin (Mike Egerton/PA)

Cristiano Ronaldo: The former Manchester United forward, 35, could be on the market as Juventus looks to further lower costs during the pandemic, according to the Daily Star, which cites Italy's Il Messaggero.

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Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Liverpool16123137162139
2Chelsea17105237191835
3Arsenal1796234161833
4Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest179442319431
5Bournemouth178452721628
6Aston Villa178452626028
7Manchester CityMan City178362925427
8Newcastle UnitedNewcastle177552721626
9Fulham176742422225
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton176742726125
11Tottenham HotspurSpurs1772839251423
12Brentford177283232023
13Manchester UnitedMan Utd176472122-122
14West Ham UnitedWest Ham175572230-820
15Everton163761421-716
16Crystal Palace173771826-816
17Leicester CityLeicester173592137-1614
18Wolverhampton WanderersWolves1733112740-1312
19Ipswich TownIpswich172691632-1612
20Southampton1713131136-256


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