MANCHESTER UNITED full-back Matteo Darmian is being used as makeweight in a deal to try and take Juventus star Paul Pogba back to Old Trafford.
Jose Mourinho is keen to bring in the French midfielder and is believed to have launched a £60million offer for him last week which was rejected.
United are now expected to add Italian international Darmian to the mix as part of the swoop.
The Old Lady have enquired about the availability of the 26-year-old and Mourinho is ready to off-load him.
The Red Devils want to try and get back as much of the £12m they paid Torino last summer for Darmian in the Pogba deal.
The right-back played 28 times and scored one goal for United last season, and initially became somewhat of a fan favourite after an impressive first few games.
However, his form dipped and injuries took their toll, meaning Darmian lost his place in the first-team.
Pogba joined United as an academy player from Le Havre in 2009, making his first-team debut in 2011 at the age of 18.
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He only went on to play another two games under Sir Alex Ferguson before joining Juventus on a free transfer at the end of 2011-12.
He has gone on to play 124 times for Juventus and scored 28 times, helping them to win Serie A for the last four seasons.
The Frenchman is expected to be one of the stars of the tournament as his country host Euro 2016 this summer.
Pogba has been heavily linked with a move away from Turin almost every summer since he has been at the club.
Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid as well as Premier League heavyweights Chelsea and the Manchester clubs have all been chasing the French midfielder’s signature.
But Juventus have always stayed firm and refused the mega-money offers on the table.
The Italian champions have made a penchant for signing freebies and could be ready to cash in on their prized asset they purchased for nothing.
Juve are expected to confirm the signing of talented Roma midfielder, Miralem Pjanic, next week, who is seen by many as a direct replacement for Pogba.
The Italian side are ready to offload first-choice right-back Stephan Lichtsteiner to Chelsea and Darmian would be a ready-made replacement.
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