Juventus chief executive Giuseppe Marotta has revealed that it became impossible for the Italian club to keep hold of Paul Pogba once the midfielder had decided to embark on a new career path at Manchester United.
Pogba's transfer to United was arguably the most high-profile and protracted of the summer, as Jose Mourinho finally got his man when an £89m deal was agreed with the Old Lady.
"We'd always maintained that we did not want to sell Pogba given his importance to the team, the club and the supporters," Marotta told the official Juventus website.
"But once he had decided to embark on a new adventure at Manchester United it became difficult and indeed impossible to keep him, so we allowed him to fulfil his wish of moving on.
"At Juventus, we've always believed that the destiny of a player remains their own choice either to remain or leave the club."
Pogba has started United's last two Premier League fixtures against Southampton and Hull City, after facing a ban for their opener against Bournemouth.