Paul Pogba's former Manchester United teammate Wes Brown has ruled out a return to Old Trafford for the midfielder for a third spell.
Former United star Pogba has not played since September 2023 due to a four-year ban for failing a drugs test, which was subsequently reduced to 18 months.
Poga will be eligible to join and train with a new team in January but will not be able to play competitively until March, with United one of several clubs linked with the 31-year-old World Cup winner.
But ex-United defender Brown, who trained with Pogba at United when the Frenchman was promoted to the first team by Sir Alex Ferguson in 2011, said he cannot see the midfielder returning to his old club. “I'm not sure Paul Pogba will return to United for a third time,” Brown told 10bet.
“I don't see it happening. Paul is of course of absolute class as an individual player. I always liked the way he played. Once again he has a lot of support, but there is no doubt about his abilities as an individual.
“It will be difficult for him to be out for 18 months. It will take some time for him to get back to the levels we have seen him reach before. I know he will train somewhere, but it's a bit different training on his own, not around world class players.
“Someone will definitely pick him up, there's no doubt about that, but if I'm honest I don't see it being Man United.”
Pogba first left United in 2012 to join Italian side Juventus after refusing to sign a new contract with the Red Devils, citing a lack of first-team opportunities for his decision.
Former United boss Ferguson accused Pogba of disrespecting the club and claimed the player and his agent had been planning a move to Juventus for some time.
Pogba returned to United under Jose Mourinho in 2016 for a club record fee of £89 million, but struggled to justify that exorbitant fee and subsequently left in 2022, rejoining Juventus as a free agent when his contract expired.
In September 2023, Pogba was provisionally suspended after failing a doping test. A second sample tested in October 2023 confirmed the findings of the first test and Pogba was handed a four-year ban.
Last October, Pogba's suspension was reduced to 18 months, allowing him to resume training next month and return to competitive play in March. Pogba's contract with Juventus was terminated by mutual consent on November 30.
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