Ole fights Real ‘campaign’ to sign Pogba
OLE GUNNAR Solskjaer believes Paul Pogba may be the target of a real Madrid campaign amid concerns the Manchester United star’s head has been turned by interest from spain.
Sportsmail understands that a change in Pogba’s attitude and body language has been noticed at the club since he admitted during the recent international break that it would be ‘a dream’ to play for the european champions under Zinedine Zidane. It has coincided with a charm offensive from the usual elements in the spanish media loyal to real. United are adamant that Pogba — whose agent Mino raiola held detailed talks with Barcelona a year ago — will not be allowed to leave with more than two years left on his contract plus a 12-month extension clause. and solskjaer insists the player is happy too after praising his performance against Barca in midweek. ‘There might be a campaign, you never know what there is, but in my talks with Paul he’s always positive,’ said the United boss. ‘I don’t see a difference in him when I chat to him. He’s focused on performing and he always gives his best. ‘He had his highest ever output physically on Wednesday night. He’d never run as much in a United shirt. That was brilliant. The effort and attitude are there.’ even so, the change in Pogba’s statistics since he was sent off against Paris saint-Germain in February is quite alarming. Having scored eight goals and made five in his first 10 games under solskjaer, the France midfielder has no goals and just one assist in the last 10 games. There are also renewed concerns over Pogba’s off-the-field distractions. Last week he wanted to organise a personal sponsorship event with adidas at Carrington on a training day but was told to switch it to his day off instead. There is a belief that Pogba could look for a move if United fail to qualify for the Champions League and they face West Ham at Old Trafford this evening desperate for a win to revive their top-four hopes.