Juventus Reportedly Eyeing Free Transfer for Manchester United's Tahith Chong

Juventus are reportedly interested in signing Manchester United youngster Tahith Chong on a free transfer at the end of the season.

Jack Gaughan of the Daily Mail reported the Bianconeri are keeping tabs on the 19-year-old, who is in the final year of his contract at Old Trafford.

As Gaughan observed, there are parallels with the Italian giants' capture of Paul Pogba when he left United in 2012 upon the expiration of his contract. United had to spend a world-record £89 million to bring him back to the club four years later.

Chong has made eight senior appearances for United, all of which have come under manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

The winger recently opened up about his recent experience of linking up with the senior squad:

He has played in four first-team matches this season, starting twice in the UEFA Europa League and once in the Carabao Cup against Rochdale.

ESPN's Alex Shaw criticised of him during one of the former, while WhoScored.com's Josh Wright revealed ahead of the latter fixture he had not been too impressed with him, either:

Chong has only played 152 minutes of first-team football for the Red Devils this season, so it's harsh to be too critical of him at this stage—he needs more of an opportunity to impress.

He showed flashes of his talent in pre-season, including against Inter Milan, per James Robson of the Evening Standard:

When United secured fellow academy graduate Mason Greenwood's future with a new contract in October, Samuel Luckhurst of the Manchester Evening News reported the club would also look to do the same with Chong.

If they can get him to sign a new contract, that should ward off Juve's interest in him for the time being. And even if Chong doesn't end up making it at United, it would at least prevent them from losing him for free.