Man United ace quit ‘because of Paul Pogba’ as Kobbie Mainoo advised | Football | Sport

Pogba, who is currently attempting to revive his career at Monaco, left United on a free transfer for the second time in 2022. It was during that second stint that his presence played a part in Donny van de Beek concluding it was time to walk away. During a recent appearance on the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast, Pogba was quizzed on what guidance he’d offer Mainoo and appeared to hint he should seek pastures new: “He played and he’s such a talented, such a talented kid. He’s still young. It’s difficult. It’s really difficult. It’s the way how he feels. If he feels that, if he’s good with the manager, if the manager really trusts him, because he’s going to have all the clubs behind him, this is for sure.

“But I don’t know about his contract, because if he will be a free agent, it will be a different story, I think. But, you know, a kid like this, you know, that thinks that he can play and other people think that he can play, his managers pushing him, telling him, you can play in this team, why you don’t play. That also put this in this kid and he’s like, ‘Yeah, I should leave.'”

Pogba went on to concede that “maybe it’s not the right decision” given how cherished Mainoo is at Old Trafford. The Frenchman concluded by saying he simply desires what’s best for the player, whom he takes great pleasure in watching.

It wouldn’t be the first time Pogba played a part in persuading someone to abandon the United project. This follows Van de Beek’s former agent, Guido Albers, confirming the World Cup winner’s involvement in seeing his former client leave United.

Albers told Voetbal Primeur: “I saw the disappointment about the way he was treated by Manchester United, and he saw up close what I did to turn the situation around. But from the day he was not allowed to leave Manchester United again, it was final.

“In the Netherlands, Donny got all the appreciation, performed well and was super popular with the fans. At Manchester United, he then never played. The relationship between him and the club really cooled down badly.

“He had to compete against Paul Pogba, who reported late to the training camp, said sorry and was allowed to play again – in the place of a boy who was training 10 hours a day for eight weeks to show he was good enough.

“I then had that disappointment thrown at me. I underestimated what not playing anymore did to him mentally. I should have looked earlier, ‘How can I help him?'”

One can sympathise with Van de Beek’s grievances and why he may have felt sidelined by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and then Erik ten Hag. The Dutchman was dispatched on loan to Everton and Eintracht Frankfurt before departing Old Trafford for good to join Girona in 2024.

Mainoo finds himself in an entirely different situation, given that he is a homegrown talent who commands the trust of the vast majority of supporters. Nevertheless, that has not stopped Pogba from wading in and offering counsel that many fans will hope the youngster chooses to disregard.