Pogba’s feeling the love back at Manchester United

Paul Pogba left Manchester United under a cloud four years ago but Jose Mourinho insists the record-breaking signing has been a ray of sunshine since signing on the dotted line.

Sir Alex Ferguson’s run-in with the Frenchman’s agent Mino Raiola – who will reportedly earn up to £20m out of the transfer – paved the way for an escape to Juventus four years ago.

It has ultimately cost United more than £89m to whisk him away from Italy, but the hope at the club is that the risk factor will be minimised thanks to familiar surroundings.

And Mourinho insists Pogba has walked through the doors with a smile on his face – and feet firmly on the ground.

“I can feel that when I speak with him for the first time,” said Mourinho. “I’m feeling now when I see him at the training ground with people he knows since he was a kid. He doesn’t look like a star.

“He looks like a kid who is back to his old school and is finding people that he cares about and people that love him a lot.

“So I believe that, after a couple of days, he will feel like he never left the club. So I think at adaptation level, he’s not a new player – he’s just a kid back home again.”

 (Photo by Barrington Coombs – The FA/The FA via Getty Images)

Despite the mega outlay the 23-year-old midfielder is still not considered the finished article by Mourinho, who admits the pressure that comes with his price tag will be tough to bear.

“We need to get the best out of him and this will be a process,” Mourinho added. “So if he needs protection, I am here to protect.

“I know some people think that he arrives here now and, the first time he touches the ball, he scores, but I’m here to protect him and give him the best conditions to be what we think he is going to be, which is a football player for Man United, a reference for this club. I’m so happy.”