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Gossip: Man Utd 'want to swap Pogba for Neymar', Real Madrid 'target Klopp', Chelsea 'close in on Allegri'

Neymar (left) and Pogba (right) in a swap deal? Klopp a wanted man?
Neymar (left) and Pogba (right) in a swap deal? Klopp a wanted man?

It takes more than a new haircut and a couple of goals in the derby to win Jose Mourinho’s heart. The Manchester United manager is still reportedly planning to sell Paul Pogba – and he has come up with a bombastic way of doing it.

The Daily Star Sunday “exclusively” claims United will ask Paris Saint-Germain to give them Neymar in exchange for Pogba and his team-mate Anthony Martial.

The two Frenchmen are said to be wanted by the French club, and Mourinho is more than happy to send them back across the Channel so long as PSG’s Brazilian superstar comes the other way.

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Because Jose is feeling generous after yesterday’s Pog-inspired comeback against Manchester City, he is also willing to give PSG an extra £50m to sweeten the transfer.

The deal would make sense in a lot of ways. Long-term United target Neymar has failed to settle in Paris, while Pogba and Martial have both been coveted by PSG in the past

The fact the story was almost certainly concocted in the vivid imagination of a Daily Star Sunday content producer while he or she was drunk on Saturday night is just a minor drawback really.

Klopp emerges as Zidane replacement

Liverpool fans will hope the lead sports story in the Sun on Sunday was devised in a similar way, because it’s frightening stuff for the Reds if it’s true.

The tabloid claims Real Madrid will target Jurgen Klopp as their next manager if Zinedine Zidane leaves the Bernabeu this summer, which he almost certainly will unless Cristiano Ronaldo overhead kicks him to a third successive Champions League triumph.

Klopp has apparently won himself some “high-powered admirers” in the Spanish capital with the way he has turned Anfield into a theatre of sexy football while having Dejan Lovren in his team.

READ MORE: Liverpool draw a blank at Goodison in dour derby

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With both clubs on course to make the Champions League semi-finals, Klopp could feasibly knock out Zidane and end up with the French legend’s job.

Zizou wouldn’t be out of work for long though, because the Sunday Express claims he is already being lined up by Juventus as a replacement for Massimiliano Allegri. That it turn would allow Allegri to replace Antonio Conte at Chelsea. So everyone would be happy, apart from Liverpool who may end up having to get Alan Pardew.

Pep Guardiola has no plans to get involved in the managerial merry-go-round this summer. Instead he is set to sign a new Man City deal worth £20m a year that will make him the world’s highest-paid gaffer, which is nice (Sunday Mirror).

Elsewhere, Leicester City are set to spend £17m on Norwich City’s attacking midfielder James Maddison as a replacement for Riyad Mahrez (Sun on Sunday), businesswoman Amanda Staveley’s bid to take over Newcastle United is “back on” following “constructive” talks with Toon owner Mike Ashley (Sunday Mirror) and Magpies boss Rafa Benitez says the club are scouting non-league football to find “another Jamie Vardy” (Chroncile). Doesn’t sound like Rafa is expecting much of a transfer war chest from Staveley then.

@darlingkevin