'Paul has always given his best to United'
Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has praised midfielder Paul Pogba and dismissed speculation about the French international's future at the club.
Speaking to reporters at the WACA cricket ground in Perth, Australia ahead of the Reds' first pre-season game on Tour 2019, the Norwegian spoke at length about the 26-year-old, who has been linked with a possible move away from United.
"It's been a long summer, hasn't it?" joked Ole. "There has been loads of talk and speculation about all of our players or many of our players, both ins and outs. For me, it's business as usual. When you're at Manchester United, you expect these things to pop up during the summer.
“Paul's never been a concern for me. When he's on the pitch, he's working hard. He's a professional, a true professional, and a proud boy. We've got a few years left of his contract and, for me, he's been fantastic since he came back into training.”
Pogba has a contract with the club until 2021, and Solskjaer stressed there have not been any bids from suitors keen to acquire the Academy graduate's services.
"As far as I'm aware, and up until now, we don't have any bids for any of our players," said the boss. "So there's no reason to say anything other than Paul and most of our players are on long contracts. We're Manchester United, we don't have to sell players.
"Of course, I've been in touch with Paul [during the summer break]. I've spoken to Paul, I've spoken to Rom, Rashy, Jesse... I've spoken to all of the players more or less over the summer. As you do, you keep in touch with them.
“Paul's a top, top bloke. He's a great, great professional. He's never been any problems. He's got a heart of gold.”
United start work at The WACA
GalleryExclusive images of Aaron Wan-Bissaka and the Reds training for the first time at Perth's iconic cricket ground.
The manager suggested there was a media "agenda" around certain players and referred to this week's stories that Pogba had been embroiled in a dispute with Jesse Lingard in Perth.
Solskjaer continued, addressing the journalists present: "Jesse and Paul [were] walking around yesterday and it's been portrayed as a fight between the two boys. I know you're here to sell papers and sell stories, but that's nothing. There are no problems between the boys at all. They're all professional and pre-season has been very, very good so far.
“I'm here to talk about the whole team, the pre-season and the season coming. But what I will say is that Paul has never put himself out of the team. He's always wanted to play. He's always given his best and I can't report anything but that.”
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