Paul Labile Pogba  is a French professional footballer who plays for Serie A club Juventus and the France national team. A versatile player, he operates primarily as a central midfielder, but can be deployed as a left winger, attacking midfielder, defensive midfielder and deep-lying playmaker.

Born in Lagny-sur-Marne, Pogba joined the youth team of Ligue 2 side Le Havre in 2007, before a protracted transfer brought him to Manchester United two years later. After beginning his senior career with Manchester United two years later, limited appearances persuaded him to depart to join Italian side Juventus on a free transfer in 2012, where he helped the club to four consecutive Serie A titles, as well as two Coppa Italia and two Supercoppa Italiana titles. During his time in Italy, Pogba further established himself as one of the most promising young players in the world and received the Golden Boy award in 2013, followed by the Bravo Award in 2014. In 2016, Pogba was named to the 2015 UEFA Team of the Year and the 2015 FIFA FIFPro World XI after helping Juventus to the 2015 UEFA Champions League Final, their first in 12 years.

Pogba's performances at Juventus led to him returning to Manchester United in 2016 for a then-world record transfer fee of €105 million (£89.3 million). The fee was the highest paid by an English club until 2021. In his first season back, he won the League Cup and the Europa League. In the 2018–19 season, he was named in the PFA Team of the Year.

Early life

Pogba was born in Lagny-sur-Marne, Seine-et-Marne, France, to Guinean parents. He is a Muslim. He has two older brothers who are twins – Florentin Pogba and Mathias Pogba – born in Guinea, who are also footballers and play for the Guinean national team. Florentin currently plays as a defender for ATK Mohun Bagan, while Mathias most recently played as a forward for ASM Belfort. Growing up, Pogba was a fan of Arsenal.[better source needed]

Club career

Early career

Pogba began his football career at the age of six playing for US Roissy-en-Brie, a few miles south of his hometown. He spent seven seasons at the club before joining US Torcy, where he served as captain of the club's under-13 team.

After one season with Torcy, Pogba joined professional club Le Havre. In his second season at the club, Pogba captained its under-16 team to the final phase of its domestic league, the Championnat National des 16 ans. Le Havre finished second to Lens in the final group phase, finishing ahead of the likes of Lyon and Nancy. Pogba also established himself as a youth international for his country.

Manchester United
 

Despite having the option to appeal, Le Havre confirmed on 18 June 2010 that they had reached an agreement with Manchester United for the transfer of Pogba, with the terms of the agreement being confidential.

Pogba completed his transfer to Manchester United on 7 October 2009 and made his debut with the club’s under-18 team on 10 October in a 2-1 defeat against Crewe Alexandra.

He finished the 2009-10 under-18 campaign with seven goals in 21 appearances, as the team finished first in their group but lost to Arsenal 5-3 on penalties in the play-off semi-finals.

In April 2010, Pogba was part of the under-18 team that successfully defended their title at the Torneo Calcio Memorial Claudio Sassi-Sassuolo in Bologna, Italy.

In the 2010-11 season, Pogba remained with Manchester United’s academy team in the Premier Academy League and played with them during the first three months of the season.

He was called up to the club’s reserve team In November 2010 and made his debut on 2 November 2010 in a 3-1 win over Bolton Wanderers.

On 10 January 2011, Pogba scored a long-range goal in the FA Youth Cup, described as a “piledriver,” in the team’s 3-2 victory over Portsmouth, allowing the team to progress to the fourth round of the competition. On 19 February 2011, Pogba was promoted from the academy to the first-team squad of Manchester United by manager Alex Ferguson in preparation for their FA Cup fifth-round match against Crawley Town.

Manchester United eventually won the Youth Cup, and Pogba played the entire match in both legs of the final.

Before the start of the 2011-12 season, Ferguson confirmed that Pogba would be included in the senior team during the season to prevent him from leaving the club when his contract expired.

Pogba was promoted to the reserve team for the 2011-12 season and made his first appearance on 15 August 2011 in a Premier Reserve League match against Arsenal, scoring a goal in a 6-0 win against Swansea City reserves on 25 August.

On 19 September, Pogba was named to the first team for their Football League Cup tie against Leeds United, and he made his professional debut as a half-time substitute in a 3-0 win.

Pogba made his Premier League debut against Stoke City on 31 January 2012 and made additional substitute appearances in the league and in European competition.

However, on 3 July 2012, Ferguson confirmed that Pogba had left Manchester United after not signing a new contract, accusing him of disrespecting the club.

Joining Juventus

Pogba then signed with Juventus and made his first appearance for the club in a pre-season friendly on 1 August 2012. He made his competitive debut for Juventus in a Serie A match against Chievo on 22 September 2012 and went on to score his first goal for the club in a win over Napoli on 20 October 2012.

He received praise for his performance in a match against Bologna on 31 October 2012.

In May 2013, Pogba was sent off in a game for Juventus for spitting toward an opponent after being slapped in the face.

In August 2013, Pogba played a key role in Juventus’ 4-0 win over Lazio in the 2013 Italian Supercoppa, scoring the first goal of the game and being named Man of the Match.

Paul Pogba life story tells us that in December 2013, Pogba was awarded the Golden Boy Award for the best young player in Europe.

In January 2014, he was named one of the ten most promising young players in Europe by The Guardian, and he scored his first goal in UEFA club competitions for Juventus in February 2014 in a win over Trabzonspor in the UEFA Europa League.

In September 2014, Pogba, playing for Juventus under new manager Massimiliano Allegri, contributed to his team’s win against Milan by providing an assist for the only goal of the game.

He later scored a decisive equalizer in a match against Sassuolo and renewed his contract with Juventus in October 2014.

Ballon d’Or Candidate

 

Pogba also scored his first-ever Champions League goal for Juventus in November 2014 and was named as one of the 23 shortlisted candidates for the 2014 Ballon d’Or.

In 2014, he was awarded the Bravo Award for being the best under-23 player in European competitions by the Italian sports magazine Il Guerin Sportivo.

In 2015, Pogba helped Juventus secure a win against Napoli with a volley goal, scored his first goal in the Coppa Italia against Verona, and scored the only goal in a victory against Sassuolo to put Juventus at the top of the league table.

Paul Pogba biography tells us that he also played a key role in Juventus’s success in the Champions League, setting up goals and helping his team advance to the final for the first time in 12 years.

In the 2015-2016 season, Pogba wore the prestigious number 10 shirt for Juventus and played in a more creative position, scoring 8 goals in Serie A and finishing as the league’s top assist provider.

Back to His Old Club

 

In August 2016, Pogba returned to his former club, Manchester United, for a then-record transfer fee, and he was suspended for the opening Premier League fixture due to accumulated yellow cards from the previous season’s Coppa Italia.

In January 2017, Pogba scored a goal in Manchester United’s 2–1 away defeat to Hull City in the EFL Cup semi-final, which helped them advance to the final with a 3–2 aggregate score.

He also scored in the 18th minute of the Europa League final against AFC Ajax, securing a 2–0 win for Manchester United and their first continental trophy in nine years.

During the 2016–17 Premier League season, Pogba played in 30 games, scoring five goals and providing four assists, but Manchester United finished in sixth place.

In the 2017–18 season, Pogba scored the fourth goal in a 4–0 victory over West Ham United on the opening weekend of the Premier League.

However, he suffered a left hamstring tear during a 3–0 win against Basel in the Champions League group stage, causing him to miss eight matches.

He returned in November 2017 and provided assists for both goals in a 2–0 victory over Everton on New Year’s Day.

Despite facing criticism for his lack of discipline and defensive duties, Pogba scored two important goals in the Manchester derby against Manchester City in April 2018, helping Manchester United come back from a two-goal deficit to win 3–2 and prevent City from securing the Premier League title against them.

However, Manchester United finished as runners-up in the Premier League and lost to Chelsea in the FA Cup final.

Not so Impressive as Captain

In the 2018–19 season, Pogba was named temporary captain in the absence of team captain Antonio Valencia.

He started the season well, scoring four goals as the designated penalty taker.

However, after a series of disappointing results, Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho announced that Pogba would not captain the team again.

Pogba and Mourinho were also filmed having a confrontation during a training session in late September.

Despite the strained relationship, Pogba continued to play and scored in a 2–1 victory over Everton.

However, his form declined, and he was benched amid ongoing tensions with Mourinho.

Mourinho was subsequently sacked, and under new caretaker manager Ole Gunnar Solskjær, Pogba experienced a resurgence in form, scoring and assisting in several matches.

However, Manchester United’s poor form toward the end of the season, including a loss to Cardiff City on the final day, led to criticism of Pogba’s performance.

Pogba scored his first goal of the 2020–21 season for Manchester United in the EFL Cup against Brighton & Hove Albion on 30 September 2020, securing a 3–0 win with a deflected free kick.

He continued his scoring form on 18 March 2021, scoring the winning goal in a 1–0 away win over Milan in the UEFA Europa League round of 16, helping his team advance to the quarter-finals with a 2–1 aggregate score.

Style of play

Primarily a central midfielder, although he is also capable of playing on the left flank, in a holding role, as a deep-lying playmaker, in a box-to-box role, or even as an attacking midfielder, Pogba was described by Manchester United as a "powerful, skilful, and creative" player who has "an eye for goal and a penchant for the spectacular." He is also capable of playing as an offensive–minded central midfielder, who will often drift out wide, known as the "mezzala" role in Italy. During his time in Italy, he gained the nicknames Il Polpo Paul ("Paul the Octopus") for his long legs that look like tentacles during tackling or running and "Pogboom" for his explosive playing style and energy on the pitch. A large, quick, hard-working and physically strong player, he excels in the air and is also known for his stamina, as well as his powerful and accurate striking ability from distance; he has also drawn praise for his finesse, technique, flair and dribbling skills, as well as his ability to hold up the ball. His characteristics and playing role in midfield initially led him to be compared with former France international Patrick Vieira in his youth. He is also known for his ability to make forward surging runs from deeper areas of the pitch.

Personal life

Pogba is a practicing Muslim. He has been married to Bolivian model María Zulay Salaues since 2019, and they have two children together. Pogba is also multilingual; other than his native French, he is also fluent in English, Italian and Spanish.

In August 2017, Pogba spoke about the possibility of openly gay footballers in the Premier League. During a UEFA respect campaign in Monaco, Pogba said of potential gay footballers that they should be considered "equal", stating further that what "he does in his private life has nothing to do with the player ... You have just to respect him ... [because] We are all equal when we play football."

In March 2022, Pogba said that he had suffered from depression whilst being managed by Jose Mourinho at Manchester United during 2018.

In August 2022, it was revealed that large sums of money were demanded from Pogba to avoid the dissemination of videos allegedly compromising him. His brother Mathias Pogba was accused of being involved. Two investigations were opened on suspicion of extortion attempts, one in France, the other in Italy.

Media and sponsorships

Pogba has a sponsorship deal with sportswear and equipment supplier Adidas. He appeared in an Adidas 2018 World Cup commercial along with other players in the Adidas stable, including David Beckham, Lionel Messi and Mohamed Salah, as well as American singer Pharrell Williams.

Appearing in EA Sports' FIFA video game series, Pogba's goal celebration, 'the Dab', was first featured in FIFA 17. Pogba, with his brothers Florentin and Mathias, attended the 2017 MTV Europe Music Awards in London, where Paul and English actress Natalie Dormer presented the "Best Song" award to Canadian singer Shawn Mendes.

Career statistics

Club

International

Honours

Juventus

• Serie A: 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16
• Coppa Italia: 2014–15, 2015–16
• Supercoppa Italiana: 2013, 2015
• UEFA Champions League runner-up: 2014–15

Manchester United

• UEFA Europa League: 2016–17 runner-up: 2020–21
• EFL Cup: 2016–17
• FA Cup runner-up: 2017–18

France U20

• FIFA U-20 World Cup: 2013

France

• FIFA World Cup: 2018
• UEFA Nations League: 2020–21
• UEFA European Championship runner-up: 2016

Individual

• UEFA European Under-17 Championship Team of the Tournament: 2010
• UEFA European Under-19 Championship Team of the Tournament: 2012
• FIFA U-20 World Cup Golden Ball: 2013
• Golden Boy: 2013
• Serie A Team of the Year: 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16
• FIFA World Cup Young Player Award: 2014
• Bravo Award: 2014
• UEFA Team of the Year: 2015
• FIFA FIFPro World11: 2015
• ESM Team of the Year: 2015–16, 2018–19
• UEFA Europa League Squad of the Season: 2016–17, 2020–21
• UEFA Europa League Player of the Season: 2016–17
• PFA Team of the Year: 2018–19 Premier League

Orders

• Knight of the Legion of Honour: 2018