3 midfielders Juventus should target to replace Pogba

There's less than a month remaining in the summer transfer window, and Juventus has to act quickly if it wants to secure a suitable - if not direct - replacement for Paul Pogba.

The Frenchman is on the verge of completing his much-ballyhooed €110-million move to Manchester United, leaving a sizeable gap in the Juventus midfield.

Sky Sport Italia's Gianluca Di Marzio believes the sale is independent of Gonzalo Higuain's massive €90-million transfer, meaning the Bianconeri could very well have fresh funds to spend.

And spend it they must. Having acquired the otherwise ineffective Hernanes from Inter just a few hours before the transfer deadline last summer, they know perhaps better than most the perils of making last-minute swoops. The Brazilian was a stop-gap solution for Arturo Vidal, but he barely made any impact.

Hernanes is likely on the way out as well.

Here are three players Juventus should target now that Pogba has decided to end his four-year stay in Italy:

Blaise Matuidi (Paris Saint-Germain)

Faced with questions over his own future, Blaise Matuidi would offer Juventus similar characteristics to Pogba. The two started for France at Euro 2016, although neither of them particularly excelled.

Matuidi's also a client of agent Mino Raiola, who's brokered Pogba's departure to United for a world-record fee. It's believed Raiola claimed a 20 percent cut as commission, and he could now work for Juventus on the other side of the negotiating table.

A high-intensity midfielder with a capacity to cover a lot of ground, Matuidi would also get a fresh start in Turin. He's no longer considered a guaranteed starter in Paris, with Grzegorz Krychowiak, Adrien Rabiot, Marco Verratti, Thiago Motta, and Javier Pastore vying for midfield roles.

PSG manager Unai Emery hinted that Matuidi could leave sometime over the next month - even though the Spaniard would like to keep him.

"We've spoken about how there are a lot of midfielders and that there could be a situation in a given moment that the player could leave, but of course, I as coach am behind him," Emery said in July. "The circumstances could change that, but in principle, it's not what I want."

Nemanja Matic (Chelsea)

A play for Nemanja Matic would be more difficult to complete, but it's nonetheless something the Italian outfit should consider. Chelsea manager Antonio Conte shot a warning to his former club earlier in the week, declaring Matic isn't for sale. But the arrival of N'Golo Kante is likely to limit the Serbian's playing time, and he could in the end force an exit.

Conte went so far as to call Matic "a fantastic midfielder, one of the best in the world."

It's true the player was a revelation in a holding role as Chelsea won the 2014-15 Premier League title.

Matic's story is similar to Pogba's in a way - albeit at a much smaller scale. Chelsea sold Matic to Benfica for a relative pittance, only to reclaim the player at five times the value.

There's a reason why he's coveted, even after slumping along with the rest of his Chelsea teammates to a 10th-place Premier League finish last season. Matic is an extremely technical player who can distribute the ball and keep things organised in front of the defence. His positioning is on-point, his tackles are accurate, and so are his passes. At a team like Juventus, he's bound to fit in.

Mousa Dembele (Tottenham)

Mousa Dembele was one of the driving forces behind Tottenham's unexpected Premier League title challenge, a confident dribbler and quick decision-maker with the ball. He was often allowed to push forward under manager Mauricio Pochettino, who could rely on Eric Dier to take care of defensive duties. In all, Dembele became Tottenham's quiet leader, and he kept the machine going.

Like Pogba, the 29-year-old Belgium international has a reputation for his strength. There's not much pace to his game, but he picks his moments. Juventus boss Massimiliano Allegri could deploy Dembele to the left of Claudio Marchisio or Sami Khedira - exactly as he played Pogba.

Tottenham could afford to part ways with Dembele now that it has Victor Wanyama in its ranks, but such a move would also require a substantial fee.