Former Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger has said that Paul Pogba has not been fit since the beginning of the season and that combined with the ambition to leave Manchester United has contributed to the average performances on the playing field. The Frenchman has looked far from his best during the current campaign and he has made no goalscoring contributions since the Red Devils’ 4-0 triumph over Chelsea in the season opener.

Speaking on BeIN Sports, Wenger told: “First of all, I think Paul Pogba, since the start of the season, has never been completely fit injury wise. He doesn’t look, I’ve seen him the other night against Arsenal, he doesn’t look completely confident physically and he’s the type of player who has a huge physical power. He needs to be perfectly fit physically. After that, when a player wants to leave and you stop him from leaving, you know you go through a process of rebuilding the relationship that the first thing that suffers is the performances.”

Pogba had talked up the desire to pursue a fresh challenge during the summer and reports emerged that he could make the move to Real Madrid before the season begins. However, that was certainly not the case with the Red Devils maintaining a not-for-sale stance and they have yet to get the best out of the Frenchman this season.

Pogba started the season with a bang as he registered two assists against the Blues but he has since gone five matches without a meaningful contribution. An ankle injury has no doubt hampered his performances on the field of play but United are coming to a point in the season where they can’t afford any more setbacks.

Pogba is expected to return for the Liverpool clash at Old Trafford after the international break and the faithful will be hoping that he can put up a strong performance for the Red Devils, who have made their worst ever beginning to a Premier League season after eight games. Manchester United are currently languishing in the bottom half of the table with just nine points on the board.