Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho has claimed that the world-record sum the club paid for Paul Pogba last summer will soon seem cheap.
Transfer fees have skyrocketed in football over recent years, with United setting the new highest mark by splashing £89m to bring Pogba back to Old Trafford from Juventus.
However, Mourinho believes that such figures could become the norm as early as this summer due to the ongoing inflation in the transfer market.
"I am pretty sure next summer some players with only half his quality will cost the same money. I am waiting for that moment to release him from the scrutiny that goes with his price. Right now when he plays well, which he does many times, people think it is normal and when he does not perform quite so well pundits and even supporters go strong on him," he is quoted as saying by The Guardian.
"I am really happy with what he has been doing for us. He gives us an incredible balance and he is still very young. He starts build-ups from the back, he recovers the ball and at the top of the pitch he is a guy that can score goals. He can be fantastic and I think in a couple of years you will realise he was cheap. Not many clubs have a vision of what is likely to happen.
"A few years ago £25m bought you a phenomenal player. Today £25m is not even a player, just a prospect of a player. Those who are already big players are bound to cost more. I think next summer will bring a few surprises at this level and probably Paul will lose his status as the world's most expensive player, which will be a good thing. He gets a lot of attention because of his price but he is still happy to play football and the most important thing for him is to never lose that happiness."
United are amongst the teams who have been tipped to break the world record transfer fee again this summer, with Antoine Griezmann being heavily linked to the club.
Barney Corkhill
