Paul Pogba will stay at Manchester United and is ready to negotiate new contract, says Mino Raiola

Pogba was expected to agitate for a move away from Old Trafford before coronavirus pandemic

Mark Critchley
Northern Football Correspondent
Sunday 23 August 2020 17:53 BST
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Paul Pogba will remain at Manchester United during the current transfer window and is ready to negotiate a new contract, according to his agent Mino Raiola.

Earlier this year, the 27-year-old was widely expected to agitate for a move away from Old Trafford having claimed it was “time to have a new challenge” last summer.

Pogba failed to secure a transfer to either Real Madrid or Juventus and stayed put, but an ankle injury limited him to just eight appearances for United prior to lockdown.

The postponement of the Premier League season allowed Pogba to full recover from his injury and he played 14 times for United once football restarted.

Raiola was publicly hitting out at United and manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer over the subject of his star client’s future as recently as February.

But Pogba’s agent said on Sunday that he expects the France international to stay beyond October’s transfer deadline.

“Pogba will remain at United,” he told Sky Sport Italia. “[He] is key player for United. They’ve an important project and he’s 100% included.

“United will not accept any bid on this summer to sell Pogba. We’re going to speak about a new contract soon, no stress.”

Pogba’s current Old Trafford contract effectively has two years left to run. United are able to trigger a one-year extension before the midfielder’s terms expire next June.

United became increasingly confident during the lockdown that Pogba would stay at Old Trafford given the effect of the coronavirus pandemic on the transfer market.

Juventus' finances have been badly affected by the pandemic, with several high-earning players already on their books, while Madrid are also reluctant to spend heavily in the current climate.

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