Florentin Pogba has revealed that his brother Paul Pogba will only leave Manchester United if Real Madrid and Barcelona come calling for him.
In an interview with AS, Florentin Pogba has claimed that there are only two clubs that have a realistic chance of swooping Paul Pogba away from Manchester United. The 28-year-old defender has revealed that his brother will only leave the Premier League heavyweights for La Liga elite Barcelona or Real Madrid.
Pogba has been quite a polarizing figure all throughout his senior career, and more so since he returned to Manchester United in the summer of 2016. In particular, the current season has seen the Frenchman divide opinions more than any other, particularly over the course of his run-ins with Jose Mourinho.
During that phase, the player was linked with a number of clubs, including Barcelona and Real Madrid, with his Manchester United future up in the air. With Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, however, Pogba has been a force to be reckoned with, and is believed to be a happy camper at Old Trafford once again.
But, his brother Florentin Pogba has stirred the pot over his future in his interview with AS, claiming that the 25-year-old will only leave Manchester United for Real Madrid or Barcelona, considering the two Spanish heavyweights are the only clubs, apart from Manchester City, where he can improve.
“It’s true [family being fans of Barcelona]. We like tiki-taka. Whenever I can, I watch their games [on television] or go to the Camp Nou. When my brother leaves Manchester United, there are only three clubs he can go to to improve: City, Real Madrid or Barca. He’s not going to go to City, so he’ll come to Spain: to Barca or Madrid.”
Florentin Pogba also added that his brother could have joined either Barcelona or Real Madrid when he left Juventus, but had his heart set on returning to Manchester United.
“When he was at Juventus, he could have gone to Barcelona, but he was determined to return to Manchester United, where it hadn’t worked out for him first time round. There was also movement [over a transfer to Real Madrid] when [Zinedine] Zidane was in charge, but he had his heart set on going back to England.”
Barcelona were indeed heavily linked with Pogba last summer before he chose to stay put at Manchester United. A move to Camp Nou could have been in the offing for the summer transfer window as well.
But, the fact that the Blaugrana have already bolstered their midfield considerably by signing Frenkie de Jong, Arturo Vidal and Arthur in recent windows means there is unlikely to be any further interest to improve the department at Barcelona. Real Madrid though, could do with someone like Pogba, if they reignite their interest in the Manchester United superstar.
Luka Modric has shown signs of age catching up to him, while Isco is heavily linked with a move away from the Bernabeu. As a result, bolstering midfield is believed to be a priority for Los Blancos, although Christian Eriksen is believed to be their priority for now.
As things stand, Pogba is unlikely to leave Manchester United anytime soon. But, it will be interesting to see if he calls it quits at Old Trafford if Real Madrid or Barcelona come calling, as Florentin has claimed.