Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba has praised his fellow compatriot and new Manchester United signing Anthony Martial and has backed him to succeed at Old Trafford.
The 19-year-old forward joined United from Monaco on the transfer deadline day for a deal thought to be the region of £57.6m, which makes him the ‘most overpriced player in Europe’ in this summer’s transfer window.
Martial has played only one full season for the Monaco senior team before making the jump to one of the biggest clubs in Europe.
Pogba, who left Manchester United to join Juventus in 2012, is confident that Martial will make a strong impression in the Premier League.
“I already call him ‘little old man,'” Pogba told French TV show Telefoot, relayed by ESPN. “He’s 19 and he’s already very mature for his age.
“He has great qualities and very big potential. He’s going to bring a lot to the French team and I’m very happy for him.”
Tottenham goal keeper Hugo Lloris was also full of praise for the new United forward. The French captain says Martial has the potential to become a world class player in future.
“He has to get his bearings too — it’s never easy. There’s been a lot of talk about him recently and he’ll have to come to terms with all of that.
“But he has huge potential and I’m sure that from tomorrow [against Serbia on Monday] or in the future he’s going to help the French team.
“He’s going to continue his progress but in any case he has big potential to become a great player.”
Meanwhile, Paul Pogba has admitted that he is fully focused with the project at Juventus this season, but has refused to rule out a move next summer.
According to reports in Italian media, Pogba rejected a €85m move to Chelsea this summer, a deal which would have seen Oscar moving to Turin the other way.
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