Pogba wants Mourinho to make him feel valued again

Paul Pogba wants more support from Jose Mourinho to help him through the most difficult spell of his Manchester United career.

United’s record £89million signing has fallen out of favour and was left on the bench when Mourinho selected Scott McTominay in midfield for the 0-0 draw with Sevilla in Spain on Wednesday night.

It is understood the 24-year-old Frenchman believes he has been harshly treated by Mourinho and wants to feel valued again.

Pogba’s camp have even begun sounding out Europe’s top clubs to see if there could be a buyer for the unhappy star this summer.

United would strenuously oppose any attempt by Pogba to leave only 19 months after he returned to the club from Juventus for a then world-record fee.

They do not want a repeat of the situation with Angel di Maria, who lasted just one season after signing from Real Madrid in a British record £59.7m deal before joining Paris Saint-Germain.

However, it is a sign of Pogba’s frustration that his agent Mino Raiola has taken the first steps towards assessing other options.

Pogba has previously demonstrated a readiness to walk away from United, having left to join Juventus in 2012.

But even if United were prepared to countenance selling a player who still has more than three years left on his contract, Raiola would have to find a club willing to pay a big transfer fee as well as his £200,000-a-week wage.

Real Madrid were linked with Pogba when he returned to United from Italy in the summer of 2016 and are among a handful of clubs capable of affording him.

However, they are understood to have made a priority of signing Chelsea duo Eden Hazard and Thibaut Courtois this summer, with goalkeeper David de Gea set to stay at United.

Mourinho recently dismissed speculation over Pogba’s future as ‘lies and bull***t’, and it is understood there is no appetite among the Old Trafford hierarchy to sell.

The United manager is set to face more questions on Friday over Pogba’s prospects of returning to the starting line-up for the home Premier League clash against Chelsea on Sunday.