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Juventus' Marotta: Pogba's transfer price will rise next season
Juventus director general Beppe Marotta has warned Paul Pogba's suitors that $112 million might not be enough to sign the midfielder next year.
The France international is one of the most coveted players in world football and was this summer courted by European champion Barcelona, which failed with an $89 million bid for the 22-year-old.
Marotta has now claimed that Pogba's value is only going to rise in the next 12 months, citing the $1.3 billion Premier League clubs spent during the summer transfer window as evidence of the remarkable rate of inflation within football.
The market is only going to grow," the Juve director told reporters on Wednesday. "The Premier League is the example. Prices that are normal today would have been crazy yesterday. If Pogba should maintain the levels of last year, $112 million might not be enough next year. Maintaining a winning team is about making great signings, but when you're faced with offers of over $112 million, you wobble. But Juve wants to win and that's why we kept him."
Juve, though, lost a number of key players during the summer, with playmaker Andrea Pirlo leaving for New York FC, top scorer Carlos Tevez returning to Boca Juniors and midfield dynamo Arturo Vidal joining Bayern Munich.
The Bianconeri have made several signings to replace those who have departed, including Paulo Dybala, Sami Khedira and Mario Mandzukic, but Massimiliano Allegri's men have made a dismal start to their Serie A title defense, losing their opening two fixtures for the first time ever.
Marotta, though, is calling for calm, arguing that fatigue is a factor and that patience was always going to be needed to allow the revamped squad to gel.
"We worked during the summer window with the idea of creating a mix of experience and youth," he added. "For us, the market represented a metamorphosis. We lost at Roma [last weekend] because we're still in the initial phase of the season. It's a question of preparation and significant journeys like the one to Shanghai [for the Supercoppa Italiana].
"Facing last year's runners-up in the second round of the season is not an excuse but that was not the real Juve. Credit to Roma, but they are only three points. We're now starting from six points down and we must make them up. But our season starts now and I'm not worried about the quality of the players. We have a very good group. A period of adjustment was always necessary but we are Juventus and we must win."
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