Paul Pogba’s agent, Mino Raiola, has confirmed that they’re happy to stay at Man Utd beyond January but has insisted they must be competing for trophies next year.
As noted by The Guardian, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was keen to stress earlier this month that his star midfielder would be going nowhere in January.
SEE MORE: Man Utd paired with swoop for £50m-rated Premier League forward
Despite being limited to just eight appearances so far this season with a troublesome ankle injury sidelining him for a significant part of the campaign, Pogba remains a pivotal figure in the Man Utd squad and brings much-needed quality to the midfield.
In turn, it’s no real surprise to hear that Solskjaer is keen to avoid an exit midway through the season, and now Raiola has seemingly confirmed that transfer plan in terms of staying at United beyond the upcoming transfer window.
“Paul has always respected Manchester United, as long as Manchester United has respected Paul,” he told Sky Sports. “The only one that talks for Manchester United and Paul is Ole. I go by what he says; he will not move. That’s OK and we are good with them.
“He’s a top pro and I think that his heart is in the right place with Manchester United.”
Raiola was also asked if he saw Pogba at Old Trafford in a year, and while he did say yes, it seemingly came with a warning for the Red Devils as he insisted that he hopes they’ll be in a position to compete for major trophies by then.
United currently sit in fifth place in the Premier League table after 20 games, four points adrift of Chelsea, and so while they remain in contention for their main objective this season of qualifying for the Champions League, they also remain in the hunt for trophies elsewhere.
However, they’ll no doubt be desperate to kick on and target the Premier League title and Champions League sooner rather than later, and that will seemingly also help them keep their best players as well as attract top targets.
“Yes I can, but in a club that I hope fights for the league and hopefully the Champions League,” he added. “Is that strange? Am I the only one that’s worried? Is the owner not worried? I think that everybody that is in love with Manchester United is worried about that.
“As long as Paul is in Manchester United, he wants to win trophies with Manchester United. That’s the kind of player he is and he will not act differently.
“Like Ole’s saying, it’s a work in progress now this club. He’s says he’s working on a team for next year. Let’s hope that it goes well for him because the world needs Manchester United on the top. Clearly they are not where they think they should be.”
Time will tell if things go to plan for Pogba in Manchester, but after being sidelined for so long with that ankle problem, perhaps the more immediate focus is on playing regularly again and spearheading United’s push this year and building on that.