Manchester United are seemingly at the mercy of Paul Pogba over the coming weeks. 

The Frenchman has made no secret of his desire to seek a "new challenge" this summer. 

According to The Times, Juventus are already preparing a £120million bid to re-sign a midfielder who they sold in 2016 for a then-record £89million. 

In public, the Red Devils are adamant that the World Cup winner is not for sale, but there is a growing feeling behind closed doors that he would be allowed to leave at the right price. 

For all his talents, and he is arguably the most naturally-gifted member of an alarmingly underperforming squad, the circus that appears to accompany him has caused its fair share of problems over the past few seasons. 

Pogba felt the brunt of Jose Mourinho's wrath and wasn't alone in that. Yet even under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, there have been persistent rumours of dressing room unrest, all stemming from the 26-year-old. 

In fact, there are numerous reports emerging which suggest United aren't even sure if their disgruntled star will turn up to their pre-season tour of Australia. 

Sky Sports' Kaveh Solhekol notes that while Alexis Sanchez and new signing Aaron Wan-Bissaka have been given dispensation to return later than their teammates, with Pogba, it's a case of the club "waiting to see" if he turns up. 

The Sun have elaborated that he is under orders to catch the flight tonight but staff are "holding their breath". 

They fear his agent, Mino Raiola, deliberately spoke about Pogba leaving on Friday to cause confusion over whether he would be joining the club on their tour, which starts with a game against Perth Glory on July 13.

In footballing terms, these pre-season friendlies obviously mean little - but they are a commercial opportunity, and Pogba is United's biggest commercial asset. To have him swerve his responsibilities would be a huge embarrassment. 

He has spent the week in New York, further casting doubt on whether he'll want to travel so many miles. 

It was the great Matt Busby who once said Manchester United "strive for perfection and if we fail, we might just have to settle for excellence".

This is a long way short of those standards and the situation needs to be resolved, one way or another, as quickly as possible. 

Should Manchester United sell Paul Pogba? Let us know in the comments.