£89m Paul Pogba targets clean sweep with Manchester United

Paul Pogba has set his sights on the Premier League, Champions League and Ballon d'Or following his world-record switch back to Manchester United.
France's Paul Pogba has broken the world transfer record with his £89 million move to Manchester United. Picture: AFP/Getty ImagesFrance's Paul Pogba has broken the world transfer record with his £89 million move to Manchester United. Picture: AFP/Getty Images
France's Paul Pogba has broken the world transfer record with his £89 million move to Manchester United. Picture: AFP/Getty Images

Months of speculation and negotiation finally came to an end in the early hours of Tuesday morning when United made the official announcement they had re-signed Pogba from Juventus.

Four years on from departing Old Trafford for Juve without making a first-team start, the France midfielder has signed a five-year contract with the option of a sixth after United agreed to pay a world-record fee of €105 million (£89m).

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On Sunday, with Pogba given permission to undergo a medical, manager Jose Mourinho said he felt the 23-year-old was coming to the “perfect” place for him to become the best player in the world.

And in an interview with MUTV following the completion of the deal a day later, Pogba made it clear he has that, along with helping the club win the biggest trophies on offer, very much in his sights - a “dream” he feels Mourinho can only boost his chances of realising.

Asked about the Portuguese, Pogba said: “I spoke with a lot of players when he was at (Real) Madrid - I spoke with (Alvaro) Morata, (Raphael) Varane - and they all told me he is a coach for me, he will make me improve a lot because he makes you work harder.

“I feel this. I spoke with him a few times and he gave me energy and positivity. So I was thinking: ‘Why not?’

“I’m sure he can make me improve and make me a better player and a better person.”

When then asked what he felt he could achieve in his career, Pogba said: “I want to win the league for the first time with United, because I hadn’t won the league when I left. The Champions League of course. And, personally, one of my dreams is to win the Ballon d’Or.

“That will come with time, hopefully, but first I want to win the Premier League, which I have never done.”

Since leaving United in 2012, Pogba has helped Juve win four Serie A titles and the Coppa Italia twice, and reach the 2014-15 Champions League final. He was also part of the France side who finished runners-up at Euro 2016.

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He feels it was his “destiny” to return and that he is not focusing on the fact he is the world’s most expensive footballer.

“I just came back to Carrington. It was like I just came back home. I just went for a holiday,” Pogba said.

“It’s just a great feeling, to be honest.

“I think it’s destiny, I would say it’s destiny.

“First my mum told me I would come back here and I told her, ‘‘You never know, we’ll see’.

“I just didn’t finish what I started here so I think I came here to finish it.

“The thing with me is I only think about the pitch. I want to do great, I want to be one of the best.

“I want to win titles, I want to achieve things and that’s all - that’s why I came here, just to do this, to become one of the best and to win titles because I know this club has to win titles.

“This club is created to win titles, to win things, to win big things. That’s why. I am focused about this and that’s it. I’m just ready to go and work on that and just kill it.”

Mourinho - who has also signed Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Henrikh Mkhitarayan and Eric Bailly following his appointment in May as he looks to revive the club - said after the Pogba deal was announced: “Paul is one of the best players in the world and will be a key part of the United team I want to build here for the future.

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“He is quick, strong, scores goals and reads the game better than many players much older than he is. At 23, he has the chance to make that position his own here over many years.

“He is young and will continue to improve - he has the chance to be at the heart of this club for the next decade and beyond.”

United have confirmed Pogba will wear the number six shirt this season.