Juventus Powerhouse Paul Pogba an Ideal Fit for Arsenal or Chelsea

The door has been left ajar for Arsenal and Chelsea to press ahead with bids for Paul Pogba, following the statement from Juventus president Andrea Agnelli that he fears his club would not be able to keep the player if a big team came calling.

Both Arsenal and Chelsea were linked with a bid for Pogba in the summer—the player was aware of the reports, according to Metro—but the strapping France international remained with the Old Lady of Italian Football.

Juventus are making a decent fist of defending their Serie A title; they are one of only three sides with unbeaten records—the others being Roma and Napoli—while they are unbeaten in two games in the group stage of the Champions League.

That would suggest all is well at Juve, but Agnelli fears the balance of power has, for the moment at least, shifted away from Italy. Given recent events, it is hard to argue with the statement Agnelli gave to an Italian football conference on Thursday, per the Express' Ben Jefferson.

AC Milan sold star names Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Thiago Silva to Paris Saint-Germain, in Agnelli’s words, to "pay the cheques."

While there is cost-cutting in Italy at present, money continues to flow in other parts of Europe.

Real Madrid paid a world-record fee for Gareth Bale in the summer, Barcelona shelled out £48.6 million for Neymar, while the likes of Manchester City, Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal also spent sizeable sums in the summer.

Agnelli has inferred that players could view Juventus as a stepping stone in their career. For a side that has won 29 Serie A titles and two European Cups, it is inconceivable that they should be viewed as pit-stop on a player’s career path.

While is disappointing to see Juventus viewing themselves as second-class citizens in European football, it is positive for Arsenal and Chelsea—if indeed they do want to sign Pogba.

At 20, Pogba has his best years ahead of him. But he has experience of winning a title and would be able to slot seamlessly into any squad.

Pogba is not short on confidence, he was not afraid to speak out against Sir Alex Ferguson during his spell at Manchester United, and that is a hugely positive trait to have when you are entering a dressing room at a big club.

The key thing to understand is that Pogba can play. He faced a big challenge when making the move to Turin, but he silenced any doubters by making 27 league appearances, and in the process he did not look out of place in a midfield containing Claudio Marchisio, Arturo Vidal and all-time great Andrea Pirlo.

He has carried that form into the current campaign and won a place in WhoScored.com’s European Team of the Month in September.

Pogba has the attributes of a top-class midfielder: He is strong, both on the ground and in the air, can pass, has a touch of pace, is intelligent in possession and has an eye for goal.

In the Patrick Vieira mould, he is the sort of midfielder Arsene Wenger used to target for Arsenal. Pogba cannot be compared to Vieira yet, but the latter joined Arsenal as a 20-year-old and went on to become one of the finest midfielders of his generation.

Wenger has tried and failed to find the next Vieira, Abou Diaby to name but one who has not made the grade. Pogba has the potential to make that step up.

He would certainly be a superb addition to the Arsenal ranks, but at present the Gunners have a raft of midfield options, and their need is arguably not as pressing as Chelsea’s.

Jose Mourinho is not short of options in midfield, with creative forces Oscar, Juan Mata, Willian and Eden Hazard vying for places alongside Ramirers and Frank Lampard.

The latter is the worry for Mourinho, as Lampard is in the autumn of his career and Mourinho has indicated that he will have to manage his veteran’s workload.

Chelsea are seeking the next Lampard, and Marco van Ginkel had been earmarked for that role, but a knee injury is set to sideline him for the next year.

Finding the next Lampard is not an easy, in the same way Arsenal have found with Vieira, but the potential of Pogba marks him down as a player capable of flourishing with either of the London powerhouses.