World Cup Champion and Manchester United midfielder, Paul Pogba turns 26 today, and to mark the occasion we give you the best facts from his distinguished career to date.
Pogba is currently in his second spell at Old Trafford, having re-joined United for £89m in 2016 after four seasons with Juventus.
Following a troublesome spell under Jose Mourinho, the Frenchman has flourished under Ole Gunnar
Here is a look back at the life and times of the Frenchman in 26 facts:
1 – On the way to winning the Golden Ball award at the Under-20 World Cup, Pogba scored France’s first penalty in their shoot-out success over Uruguay. He scored, and also netted once in normal time in the competition against Uzbekistan in the quarter-finals.
2 – Having been born to Guinean parents, Pogba was eligible to play international football for two sides before opting for the country of his birth.
3 – Pogba only follows three other United players on Instagram. Jesse Lingard, David de Gea, and Romelu Lukaku are the chosen few.
4 – Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, and Gareth Bale were the only footballers to earn more than him in 2018, according to Forbes, with Pogba scooping £59m in total.
5 – Where American rapper Desiigner’s single ‘Outlet’ charted in the US Bubbling Under Hot Singles, the video for which featured Pogba.
6 – As well as this being his squad number, Pogba netted his maiden United goal against Leicester in the sixth game of his second coming at the Theatre of Dreams.
7 – Sir Alex Ferguson gave Pogba just seven run-outs in his only campaign in the senior ranks during his first spell at the club.
8 – During four years in Turin, Pogba won eight major
9 – The amount of matches he missed due to suspension while at Juventus, including a three-game ban for a straight red against Palermo.
10 – The number of minutes it took for the smirking Instagram image of Pogba which followed Jose Mourinho’s sacking as United boss to be deleted.
11 – Upon joining social media, Pogba warned fans of fake users posing as him. On Twitter alone, there are 11 accounts who still boldly claim to be representing the midfielder.
12 – The number Pogba first wore as part of the United Under-23 team.
13 – Pogba regards Odell Beckham Jr as one of his main inspirations, the New York Giants – and soon to be Cleveland Browns – wide receiver wears the number 13.
14 – The highest Pogba has ever finished in the voting for the Ballon d’Or prize. He has twice been ranked 15th.
15 – The total number of penalties in regulation play Pogba has taken in his career, scoring 11 and missing four.
16 – Pogba has been directly involved in 16 goals for United since Solskjaer took charge, scoring nine and assisting seven.
17 – Pogba’s famous ‘dab’ celebration first featured on FIFA 17.
18 – During four years at Juventus, he netted against 18 different Serie A teams, scoring three times each against Napoli and Torino.
19 – His second debut at United was delayed until the second game of the 2016-17 season, on August 19, after missing the opening game against Bournemouth due to a suspension carried over from the previous season’s Coppa Italia competition.
20 – He opened his account under Solskjaer with a double against Huddersfield Town on Boxing Day, the second goal coming from a 20-yard shot.
21 – Though United are plotting an extension, Pogba is contracted to the club until 2021.
22 – Pogba’s double against Fulham in February took his all-time Premier League goal tally to 22.
23 – Mino Raiola earned a £23m cut of the £89m transfer fee which United paid to bring Pogba back to Manchester, according to the book ‘Football Leaks: the dirty business of football’.
24 – The number of celebrities and sportspeople who featured alongside Pogba in the star-studded Adidas advert in 2017. David Beckham, James Harden, and Derrick Rose were among the group.
25 – The announcement of Pogba’s return to United was marked with a promotional video for Adidas which included 25-year-old British grime artist Stormzy.
26 – On the way to missing his penalty against Everton, Pogba took 26 steps on his way to striking the ball, which he converted on the rebound.
When Pogba does his penalty run up that could be an important goal #MUFC #MISFITS pic.twitter.com/YAj9uOjRZf
— J Kitch🌙 (@JayKitch11) March 6, 2019