Paul Pogba has revealed that he wanted to leave Manchester United in 2019 because his heart wasn’t in it.

The 31-year-old eventually left United in the summer of 2022 at the end of his contract, six years after returning to the club from Juventus for a club-record £89million fee. During his second spell at Old Trafford, Pogba scored 39 goals and added 48 assists in 226 appearances.

He won the Carabao Cup and FA Cup in his first season under Jose Mourinho, before being named in the PFA Premier League Team of the Year in 2018/19 – a campaign in which he has described as his “best” at United.

However, Pogba has now admitted he wanted to quit United at the end of that campaign. New boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer agreed to let Pogba leave the club – but chief executive Ed Woodward blocked the move.

In an interview with the Daily Mail, he said: “I will tell you something I’ve never told anyone. The year Jose went and Ole [Gunnar Solskjaer] came, it was my best season at United but after the last game I told Ole and Ed Woodward that I thought it was my last year and that I wanted to leave.

“I was 27 back then, it didn’t work out the way I wanted. I gave my best but I didn’t see the club going upwards. Manchester City and Liverpool were better than us and they were improving.

“Ole said yes (to me leaving) and that he would talk to Ed. My head was already that I wanted to go but I came back for pre-season because I wanted to be professional.

“I spoke to Ed to try to make a move but he blocked it. I didn’t want to play for United anymore but I had to be professional. Mentally I wasn’t there and then I got the injuries.”

Pogba played just 89 times during his final three years at United. His form dropped off drastically and wasn’t the same, scoring just eight goals in that time. He departed the club upon the expiry of his contract at the end of the 2021/22 season before returning to Juventus.