Paul Pogba had the ball under his spell on the left side of the opposition penalty area, having nipped in to steal it during some uncharacteristically sloppy German passing. He rapidly waved his right foot over it, dummying to push it to the right to open up a shooting angle. He feinted once, twice, three times, waiting for the defender Shkodran Mustafi to lunge in. As soon as the substitute did, Pogba was gone in the opposite direction in a flash.

He took the ball to the byline and chipped in the beautifully flighted cross that had Manuel Neuer, the normally unflappable German goalkeeper, well, flapping. The ball fell from the keeper’s palm and Antoine Griezmann poked home the second goal that sealed France’s 2-0 victory in the European Championship semi-final in Marseille.

It was a fleeting moment, over in a heartbeat, but it encapsulated why Manchester United are willing to swallow their pride and stump up £100m for the French midfielder Pogba.

The 23-year-old is capable of moments of game-changing, goal producing magic. The sort of talent that old Trafford used to be so accustomed to seeing but that has been denied them over recent years. Marouane Fellaini is more elbows than elegance after all.

That United – well, Sir Alex Ferguson - let Pogba go when he deemed his financial demands distasteful and grew tired of his agent’s positioning, must be galling but that was then. This is now. And United need the sort of star turn that Pogba is. He has youth on his side which adds to the price tag but adds to the possibilities too.

Manchester United summer transfer targets Show all 8 1 /8 Manchester United summer transfer targets Manchester United summer transfer targets Ivan Perisic, Inter Milan United want to spend £35m on Perisic but Inter are holding out for closer to £50m. That said, Mourinho is a big fan and may be willing to go the extra mile to get him. Likelihood: 7/10 Getty Manchester United summer transfer targets Renato Sanches - Bayern Munich Sanches was being chased by United before deciding on Bayern Munich last summer but is back on their radar again 12 months later. He is available for £43m and Ancelotti has admitted United are "a possibility". Getty Manchester United summer transfer targets Fabinho - Monaco An extremely versatile player Mourinho sees him more as a defensive midfielder and could be used to give Paul Pogba, last summer's big addition, more freedom. Monaco aren't in any rush to lose any more first team stars this summer though and are likely to demand a hefty fee. Likelihood: 7/10 AFP/Getty Images Manchester United summer transfer targets Eric Dier - Tottenham United have already had a bid less than £25m rejected for the defensive midfielder and know they must more than double it to have any hope of signing Dier, who is understood to want the move. Getty Manchester United summer transfer targets Nemanja Matic - Chelsea Nemanja Matic has twice worked under Jose Mourinho before and he wants to make it a third time at United. However, after beating Chelsea to Romelu Lukaku, relations between the two clubs have been soured somewhat. Getty Manchester United summer transfer targets Gareth Bale - Real Madrid The Real Madrid forward would be a marquee signing, the type that the Manchester United boardroom are keen to make, and The Independent has been told by sources from both United and Madrid that a deal is 'much likelier' than ever before. The player himself though is happy in the Spanish capital. Likelihood: 5/10 Getty Manchester United summer transfer targets Willian - Chelsea Mourinho is a huge admirer of Willian, who he signed in 2013 while at Chelsea. The pair won a Premier League title and League Cup double together the following year and it is believed that the United manager will do his best to sign the player, who has not been a regular starter in Antonio Conte’s system. Whether Chelsea will allow him to leave, particularly to join Mourinho at their rivals is yet to be seen. Likelihood: 4/10 Getty Manchester United summer transfer targets Andrea Belotti - Torino Another of Europe’s most promising players, Belotti is fast becoming well-known after his outstanding performances at Torino, where he has scored 37 goals in 64 appearances since 2015. His best years are still ahead of him aged just 23, which contributes to the incredible €100m release clause, applicable only to clubs outside of Italy, negotiated into his contract. Torino are in no hurry to sell and will drive a hard bargain with any deal likely to start at upwards of £70m. Likelihood: 7/10 Getty

It was not all glorious against Germany, there are rough edges still. He was caught out by the delightful first-half one-two between Thomas Muller and Toni Kroos and in tracking back clipped the heel of the Real Madrid player as he wound back to shoot. It should have been a free-kick on the edge of the box. A foot further on and it could have been a penalty.

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