Paul Pogba has recently revealed that he was ‘mentally’ done with Manchester United three years prior to his actual departure. The 2018 world champion in his first interview after his doping ban was reduced, allowing him to make a return in March 2025.
The ban came after Pogba had left United on a free transfer for Juventus in 2022 upon the expiry of his contract. The 31-year-old admitted he had wanted to leave in 2019 as rivals Liverpool and Manchester City were ‘better than us and always improving’.
“I will tell you something l’ve never told anyone,” Pogba told the Daily Mail. “The year Jose [Mourinho] went and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer came, it was my best season at United but after the last game I told Ole and Ed Woodward that I thought it was my last year and that l wanted to leave. “Ole said yes to me leaving and that he would talk to Ed but Ed blocked me from leaving and I wanted to be a professional.
“MY RELATIONSHIP WITH MOURINHO WAS LIKE A BOYFRIEND AND GIRLFRIEND”
“Our relationship was like boyfriend and girlfriend, we were breaking up and making up all the time, Pogba confesses. “It started great, he was one of the reasons I went back to Manchester because I spoke to him and he convinced me to come back.
