What’s the story?
Manchester United star Paul Pogba has revealed that he rejected approaches from Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona before re-joining the Red Devils last summer.
After spending four years at Juventus, United brought him back him on a world-record transfer fee of £89.3m last August. However, before he returned to the Premier League, there were approaches from the two big European clubs. Pogba, though, admitted he had his heart set on returning to United.
“Here, I have goals. It's a challenge, a big challenge for me. I could also go to Real Madrid or Barcelona, who were interested. I chose to come back here because I had it in my heart. I want to win with Manchester United, I never did. The last five years were a bit difficult. I want Manchester to become the great Manchester again,” Pogba told SFR Sport.
In case you didn’t know...
Half way through the 2011-12 season, the Red Devils came close to reaching an agreement with the midfielder. However, the France international decided to change his agent and that is when Mino Raiola entered the scene. He took Pogba to Juventus as the Old Lady signed the then young midfielder on a free transfer.
With the Old Lady, the 23-year-old established himself as one of the best midfielders in Europe. His club form saw him make it to the national squad and is now a key player in the France squad.
The heart of the matter
Pogba has been one of the few midfielders who has the ability to control the game. He was the star at the centre of the park for Juventus, playing ahead of the likes of Sami Khedira, Claudio Marchisio and also Arturo Vidal and Andrea Pirlo when the latter two were with the Italian club.
His form attracted interest from top clubs across the globe and the list included the likes of Chelsea, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain, Real and Barcelona. The two La Liga clubs made their interest public with the Catalan club ending their interest due to Juventus’ high asking price.
United were, however, willing to pay Juventus their asking price and it was a two-horse race between Real and the Premier League club. In the end, it was Pogba’s desire to return to United proved to be the deciding factor in the 20-time English champions signing him.
Sportskeeda’s take
Pogba’s decision to snub Real Madrid and Barcelona may not have been a wise one, considering United’s league position. However, it is too early to make a judgement and one need to wait at least until the end of the season to given an opinion.
