“I’m partly responsible”: Paul Scholes outlines his surprising role in Paul Pogba’s departure from Man United

Former Manchester United midfielder Paul Scholes has weighed in on Paul Pogba’s career at the club.

Paul Pogba

Pogba first joined the club’s youth side in 2009 and won the Youth Cup in 2011.

The Frenchman played seven times for the senior side before leaving for Juventus on a free transfer in 2012.

United famously brought the player back in 2016 on a record-breaking deal at the time worth £89 million.

Pogba spent six seasons at the club, playing a further 226 times and scoring 39 goals in all competitions.

He later moved back to Juventus before a ban for taking illegal substances and injury derailed his career.

Paul Scholes

Speaking on The Good, The Bad and The Football podcast, Scholes was hardly sympathetic to Pogba’s time in Manchester.

Speaking to darts player Luke Littler after he controversially named Pogba in United’s all-time XI, he ironically retorted, “Ah Pogba, yeah, good shout! Do you know what? I was half the reason he left the first time.”

Explaining the situation when he returned from retirement in 2012, he said, “I retired when I was 36 and then I came back, and Paul [Pogba] was just coming through. So I think he expected to play because I came back and in January we had no midfielders left, we were playing Rafael da Silva and Phil Jones in central midfield.”

Scholes explained that Pogba was the next youngster coming through the ranks and probably expected to play.

The former midfielder added, “I was training against him every day, and he thought he should have been playing. I came back and started playing every week and then his agent turned down deals and stuff and that’s why he left I think. So I’m partly responsible!”

Pogba is currently without a club after leaving AS Monaco in the summer.

Featured image Ed Sykes via Getty Images

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