Paul Merson has fired a warning to Manchester United star Paul Pogba over his future.
The Sky Sports pundit believes the French midfielder is entering a defining period in his career, as United prepare for their crucial nine remaining Premier League games.
This season has been somewhat of a non-event for Pogba, who has been sidelined through injury for long periods.
But the enforced break has offered him the chance to recover fully from his ankle injury that has caused so many problems for him this term, and he is now raring to go ahead of United’s resumption away to Tottenham Hotspur on Friday evening.
Much has been talked about the World Cup winner’s midfield partnership with Bruno Fernandes, and Merson believes the arrival of the Portuguese playmaker offers Pogba the perfect platform to return to his best form.
“Paul Pogba is on a six-week trial at Manchester United and if it doesn’t work out he will be gone,” Merson wrote in his Daily Star column.
‘The spotlight is going to be on him when he comes back because United were playing very well without him before the break.
“How he does over the next few weeks will decide whether they keep him, and how much he is really worth to any potential buyers.
“I think it’s a massive few weeks for him. If it doesn’t work out I think he will take the blame.
“He has a chance now to play with Bruno Fernandes and see how it works. I think they should work well together.
“Those two should hit it off in my opinion. But let’s be honest, if it doesn’t work for Pogba now, it’s just not going to, is it?”
We agree that this is an important few weeks for Pogba, who could be instrumental in lifting Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men up to the Champions League places.
However, regardless of whether he performs well or not, we still expect him to remain at Old Trafford beyond this summer as any possible suitors would be reluctant to pay such a high transfer fee during these times of financial uncertainty.
The Athletic‘s Laurie Whitwell reports that Pogba is unlikely to come straight back into the starting line-up against Jose Mourinho’s Spurs on Friday, with United preparing a side without the influential midfielder.
But the Premier League’s new rule of allowing five substitutions means he will almost certainly feature at some point and we hope he can make his mark on proceedings as he aims to regain a starting berth in Solskjaer’s side.
