Gary Neville Says Paul Pogba Doesn't 'Want to Be' at Manchester United

Former Manchester United defender Gary Neville said he believes Paul Pogba wants to leave the club amid rumours linking him with Real Madrid.

Neville spoke during Sky Sports' coverage of United's 2-0 defeat to Manchester City at Old Trafford on Wednesday, and he suggested Pogba's agent Mino Raiola and interest from Real has distracted him:

Per Goal's Chris Burton, he said: "I think he is world class. I don't think he wants to be here, that's his problem. I think his agent's into him."

He added:

"We know his agent, we know the influence he has on him, we know that Pogba has got his head turned by other clubs and he's playing like somebody who's had his head turned.

"He's playing like somebody who doesn't quite want to be here.

"The problem is if a player doesn't want to be at a club and he has the influence that I think he has in the dressing room, I think the likes of [Jesse] Lingard, [Marcus] Rashford, [Anthony] Martial, I think they do come off him.

"And I think if he's not quite at it and not raring to go, then it is a problem, it is a massive problem."

During the international break in March, Pogba said Real Madrid "is a dream club," per Goal. Los Blancos manager Zinedine Zidane also publicly praised his French compatriot.

Pogba has had the most productive league season of his career, which saw him included the PFA's Premier League Team of the Year on Thursday:

However, much of his best form came in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's first two months in charge after he took over from Jose Mourinho in December.

Pogba was disappointing in Mourinho's final months, and his form has dipped again of late.

As such, Bleacher Report's Sam Tighe was among many to question his Team of the Year inclusion:

United will have been hoping for much more from their club-record £89 million signing, who has arguably suffered because of his team-mates' lack of quality rather than inspired them to improve.

Football.London's Greg Johnson suggested Madrid might bring the best out of him:

He'll need much more consistency to succeed at the Santiago Bernabeu, which is one of the few places he might be under even more scrutiny than he is at Old Trafford.

If United can't coax the best out of him for sustained periods, or if he is considering his future at the club, they might be best off letting him leave and using his departure to fund new arrivals.