‘Pogba has never told me he wants to leave United’
Mourinho ‘in the dark’ about player’s future Manager urges Raiola to declare his intentions
Jose Mourinho has admitted he is “in the dark” over Paul Pogba’s future at Manchester United but claimed the France midfielder had never told him he wanted to quit the club.
Pogba said last month that he would be fined if he expressed his true feelings at United and last week, in an interview with German television, refused to rule out leaving in the near future.
Mino Raiola, Pogba’s agent, offered his client to Manchester City last season and has also held talks with Barcelona about a move to the Spanish champions.
Mourinho admitted he did not know what Raiola’s intentions were and had to assume Pogba wanted to remain at United on the basis of what the player had told him.
Asked if the situation with Pogba was difficult, with Raiola purportedly trying to engineer a move, the United manager said: “I don’t know if that is true. I also need the agent to tell me, or tell you in a way that I can see.
“If I watch Mr Raiola on the screen saying the player wants to leave, and that he is organising a way for him to try to leave or so on, then I will believe [it]. “At this moment, I am in the dark. The only thing that is clear for me is that the player never – never in all these days we are together – never told me that he wants to leave. If he doesn’t tell me he wants to leave, it’s because he wants to stay. That’s my conclusion, no?” Asked specifically about Pogba’s recent remarks that he is “currently” a United player but “who knows what will happen in the next couple of months”, Mourinho added: “You have to ask him. As a manager, I tell you the truth. That’s his problem, his relation with the media. I am not going to comment.” Four other players with uncertain futures are Luke Shaw, Ashley Young, Ander Herrera and Juan Mata, who are out of contract next summer, but Mourinho said he wanted the quartet to sign new deals. The Portuguese also referenced goalkeeper David de Gea, who is one of eight players out of contract in the summer but with options on the club’s side to extend by a further 12 months. “I hope they will stay,” Mourinho said. “We had a similar conversation last season about Marouane [Fellaini] and I was always saying I hope he stays. I say the same [now]. Of course, I am happy with the players. “David is David, no need of more words. Luke’s evolution made us believe he goes in the right direction and, of course, I want to keep him. Juan and Ander, even if they are not playing, by the personality point of view and character point of view, by what they represent in the modern society in football, they are almost unique pieces that I also don’t want to lose.”