Paul Pogba is now officially a free agent after Manchester United confirmed his departure on Wednesday afternoon but the club still must pay him over £1million in wages.
It was the confirmation of the inevitable that the Frenchman would be departing Old Trafford this summer after six seasons. Despite enjoying highlights and brief moments of his best form at the club, it has largely been an underwhelming stint for what is United’s record signing.
Pogba returned to United after four years at Juventus following a club-record £89million transfer in 2016. The midfielder went on to make 226 appearances and scoring 39 goals during his second stint with the club – in a spell which was disrupted by losses of fitness and form.
Pogba won just two major trophies - the EFL Cup and Europa League – at Old Trafford, both in his debut season when he was coached by Jose Mourinho. The player then went on to have a high-profile fallout with the Portuguese boss, who was sacked in December 2018.
The midfielder enjoyed a run of top form when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was appointed as the temporary replacement for Mourinho, but this spell was temporary and Pogba’s situation once again deteriorated. The Frenchman enjoyed sporadic runs of strong form in the period since, including providing a hat-trick of assists in the 2020/21 season opener against Leeds United, but each time his importance swiftly dissipated.
Although he failed to win either the Premier League or Champions League at Old Trafford, Pogba still boasts a fine CV. He helped France win the World Cup in 2018 - scoring against Croatia in the final - and lifted the Nations League last autumn, meaning that he will be in high demand this summer.
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However, Pogba is now no longer a United player – but the club will still have to shell out over £1million in wages to the player. The Frenchman reportedly earns £290,000 a week in his United contract, which means the Red Devils will have to fork out another £1.16million.
During his tenure at United, it is calculated that the central midfielder will have earned a total of £90.5million at United since his return in the summer of 2016 – slightly more than the transfer fee the club shelled out to bring him back from Juventus. This calculates out that Pogba was paid a total of £800k for each performance he made for United over the course of six seasons.
Juventus, his former club, and Paris Saint-Germain are thought to be the frontrunners for Pogba’s signature this summer.
