Man Utd told why third Paul Pogba transfer would be 'too much of a risk' with World Cup winner facing 'extremely difficult' path back into football

France international Pogba is about to complete an 18-month doping ban. He is available as a free agent after seeing his contract terminated by Serie A giants Juventus. The 31-year-old midfielder has been linked with clubs across the world.

Many potential suitors will, however, need to be convinced by Pogba’s fitness before putting any terms in place. Ligue 1 side Marseille – who already have ex-United forward Mason Greenwood on their books – have distanced themselves from a deal as a result.

There has been talk of Pogba potentially joining Lionel Messi at Inter Miami, but their 2025 MLS campaign is already underway and they cannot afford to carry any passengers. The same is true for Premier League heavyweights United, in what has been a hugely disappointing 2024-25 campaign.

With the Red Devils not in a position to take any risks, even with no transfer fee involved, former United defender Mikael Silvestre has told yaysweepstakes.com of his fellow countryman potentially heading back to Old Trafford: “No, I wouldn’t be tempted to sign Paul Pogba on a free transfer if I was Manchester United. I like Paul a lot but I wouldn't because it's going to be expensive and you don't know physically how long it’s going to take him to get up match fitness.

“Even though he’s been out of the game for 18 months, before his ban, he wasn’t really playing that much at Juventus. He’s had a couple of injuries. It's too big of a risk (to sign Pogba). If you were signing him and he was in peak fitness, he had been playing regular football, with a perfect body and mind, then it would be a no brainer, but, after what he's been through as well, it's extremely difficult for him. I wouldn't be in favour of Manchester United bringing him back to the club again.”

Pogba made his professional bow for United after stepping out of their academy system. He returned to England as the most expensive player on the planet in 2016, but retraced steps to Turin in 2022 before seeing his career grind to a halt.