Paul Pogba has admitted his second spell at Manchester United is ‘the most difficult period of my career’.
It’s been four years since the midfielder returned to Old Trafford to huge fanfare, but the club are still trying to unlock the Frenchman’s best form.
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He’s one of the club’s best paid stars, and yet his role at Old Trafford has gone backwards in recent seasons and he’s now not even a guaranteed starter in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s team.
Pogba has started just one of United’s past four matches, with the likes of Scott McTominay, Fred, Nemanja Matic and Juan Mata chosen ahead of the £89million man at times this season.
And while Donny van de Beek is still finding his feet in Manchester, the Dutch midfielder’s summer arrival has shrouded Pogba’s place in the team in even more doubt.
And the 27-year-old, currently on international duty with France, has admitted his time spent with his national team is a tonic for his struggles at United.
Speaking in an interview with RTL France, Pogba said: “I had never known such a difficult period in my career.
“The France team is a breath of fresh air, the group is exceptional, it’s magic.”
Pogba has just 18 months remaining on his United contract, and there is plenty of speculation over his future given his lack of form and run of games in the team, with Jamie Carragher among those to have called for the club to sell him.
France often see a completely different player to the one United do, and after Pogba played the whole 90 minutes in Saturday’s 1-0 Nations League win over Portugal, teammate N’Golo Kante said it’s a ‘pleasure’ to play alongside him.
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The Chelsea man, who scored France’s winning goal, told Telefoot: “He’s been injured for a while and it had been a while since we had played together.
“We remember the World Cup that we played together. It’s a pleasure to play with Paul.
“On the pitch, we felt great. I’m satisfied with the performance and the performance of the team. We were at the level we needed to be at.
“There’s a lot expected of us. We’re the world champion and the European Championship will be another challenge, but it’s certain that we’re a great team.”
France boss Didier Deschamps also weighed in on the Pogba debate last week, saying the hot-and-cold ace has been ‘impacted mentally’ by his struggles at United.
Speaking after France’s shock 2-0 defeat at home to Finland, the coach said: “He’s not in his best form, of course.
“It’s hard to remember to be positive. Obviously, he’s not in one of his better periods.
“Like all players who have a club situation that is not positive, they are also impacted mentally. I know him well enough and it can happen at some points.
“We cannot, however, say that he is fulfilled in what he does at his club.”
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