European transfer expert Gabriele Marcotti has insisted that Manchester United do not need to sell Paul Pogba in order to sign Borussia Dortmund winger Jadon Sancho.
From a financial standpoint, it has been suggested that United will only be willing to pay a big-money fee for Sancho if they can part ways with club-record signing Pogba.
However, Marcotti feels that the Premier League giants should focus on trying to find permanent homes for Alexis Sanchez and Chris Smalling, who are on loan at Inter Milan and Roma respectively.
Speaking to ESPN, Marcotti said: "Basically, if you look at Manchester United's numbers over the last few years, if you look at last season, certainly if you look at their spending, if you look at the way they have tried to work on their wage bill, I don't see why all of a sudden it becomes imperative to sell Pogba so you can bring in Jadon Sancho.
"Bear in mind, we don't quite know what the transfer market is going to look like, what the numbers are going to look like, how much money it is effectively going to take to bring in Jadon Sancho.
"I think if you are United, there are certain things you want to do, but I think they are going to be just as effective. If you can find a home for Alexis Sanchez and Chris Smalling, both of whom are on loan, both of whose loans expire. Roma would like to keep Smalling, Inter with Alexis a little bit less so.
"But those two guys together, you look at their wages and that is substantially more, for example than what Paul Pogba earns. Plus you get some money back, presumably for Smalling."
While Smalling is happy to remain in Italy's capital, Inter would want United to pay a portion of Sanchez's wages if they are to agree to a fresh deal.
Darren Plant
