Man City respond to Paul Pogba claims as midfielder available for free | Football | Sport
Manchester Cityhave shot down claims Paul Pogba could join the Premier League champions in the new year as they look to arrest their struggling form.
The former Manchester United man endured a nightmare stint with Juventus after leaving Old Trafford, firstly picking up a lengthy injury before being handed a four-year ban for a doping offence.
That was reduced to 18 months earlier this year, meaning he’ll be free to play again in March 2025, but Pogba left Juventus in November meaning he’s on the lookout for a new club.
And rather surprisingly, reports on Saturday evening said City have emerged as a potential option, as the Blues look to bolster their midfield options following an injury-ridden season.
The Independent said Pogba has been ‘sounded’ out by City, who’ve struggled throughout the campaign with injuries.
But Express Sport understands City have no interest in Pogba and have never had an interest in him.
Guardiola has long been linked with a move for Pogba who suggested he could have swapped United for City as a free agent in 2022.
Speaking to The Daily Mail earlier this year about his departure, he said: “Honestly, I had a lot of problems. I had the burglary, I had [a] problem with the extortion.
“I had to leave Manchester. Let’s say it like this: if I didn’t have that [problems] maybe I would have been at City.
“But with an ‘if’ you can save the world because my head wasn’t about staying in Manchester. But it wasn’t a closed door because I left United for free.”
After a rocky spell in Turin, it is unclear where Pogba will land next.
Pogba recently shared a cryptic clue about his future, taking to Instagram to share a story which had a zipped mouth and a winking face emoji, suggesting news is coming.
Guardiola himself has remained coy about the chances of City making big January signings amidst the Catalan’s worst run of form as the club’s manager.
Speaking on Friday ahead of his pre-Manchester Derby press conference: “No. What I want is my players back – the players that we have. I want the squad that we had at the beginning of the season that were desperately competing. This is the only regret I have, that I don’t have these players – not new ones.
“In the right moment, we will see. The transfer market has shown how expensive players are in the past four or five years. I’m sorry, we’re not the best in those terms.”
He added: “If we need players then we go to the transfer market but I don’t know who is around. We have known it from the beginning but Rodri is a Ballon D’Or player. We are playing without the best player in England last season. That is the problem.
“It is difficult. The moment he comes back, we will be strong again. We will be a good team. Sooner or later we are going to be back.”
