Ole Gunnar Solskjaer expects Paul Pogba to be at Manchester United next season despite his public desire for a 'new challenge'.
The MEN revealed in January Pogba has told teammates at United he still wants to leave and dressing room sources said the Frenchman's 'head is not currently at the club'.
Pogba's agent Mino Raiola angrily responded to comments made by Solskjaer last month that 'Paul is our player, not Mino's' on Twitter. Raiola said 'you cannot own a human being already for a long time in the UK or anywhere else. I HOPE Solskjaer DO NOT WANT TO SUGGEST THAT PAUL IS HIS PRISONER'.
Raiola also reminded Solskjaer he 'should just remember things that he said in the summer to Paul' and the Norwegian 'has other things to worry about'. United are unbeaten in 11, have kept nine clean sheets during the run and racked up two five-goal hauls in the Europa League knockout stage.
Pogba, who has not started a match since September 30, is contracted to United until 2021 and the club has the option of an additional year. "Paul's our player and he's got a year plus an option of his contract," Solskjaer stressed. "So you can expect Paul to be here, yeah."
Although Raiola has expressed an antagonistic attitude towards United on a number of occasions in print and on social media, the club's executive vice-chairman Ed Woodward is understood to like the Italian. Senior United figures regard Raiola's outbursts as 'part of a game'.
Pogba outlined his desire for a 'new challenge' in June and Raiola claimed he was 'in the process' of engineering a transfer that never materialised. In December, Raiola said he was 'sorry' he could not move Pogba to Madrid and claimed he 'wouldn't bring anyone else' to United.
United won without Pogba again in their 5-0 thrashing of LASK Linz in the Europa League round-of-16 first leg. United's momentum could be halted by concerns over the coronavirus (COVID-19) that has caused the suspension of major European leagues and sporting events outside of the United Kingdom.
As it stands, United are due to play at Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday. "For us, it counts," Solskjaer said. "Because we know what we can do and are still improving, and that's what matters for us, to see the improvement of the team, the players, the group together, that was vital enough.
"If something was decided we don't want in the tournament but we'll just have to wait for the outcome of the meetings."
