Paul Pogba

France are two wins away from emulating their celebrated class of 1998, who prevailed 3-0 in the World Cup final against Brazil on home soil thanks largely to a first-half brace from Zidane.

The ex-Juventus and Real Madrid great was only just getting started.

The 25-year-old, who returned to Old Trafford from Juventus for £89m in August 2016, has struggled to impress under Jose Mourinho this season and has been left out of the starting XI for United's last three games.

The midfielder is among those featured in the 25-man France squad for this month's friendlies against Colombia and Russia, but with the World Cup looming, Deschamps is concerned about the player.

"I don't know what it is. I'm sure I'll hear about it. Of course, it's a situation he won't be enjoying," he said.

Recent reports have suggested Pogba is unhappy with the position he is being asked to play in by Mourinho, while others have linked him with a move to Real Madrid in the summer.

However, when asked about this speculation, Mourinho said: "I think you are nice with your words because when you say a lot of speculation, you should say a lot of lies.

"I can speak on Paul's behalf without any kind of problem. He accepts he's not been playing well in the last few matches, but that's all.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Zlatan Ibrahimovic are also on board with the #EqualGame campaign, which aims to show that "everyone has the right to enjoy football, no matter who you are, where you're from or how you play".

Barcelona star Messi said his belief in the power of sport is why he has thrown his weight behind the scheme.

The former Juventus star has started the new season in fine form, scoring in 4-0 wins against West Ham and Swansea City to leave United top of the Premier League table after two games.

And while Martial has a number of team goals that he hopes to share with Pogba, he also thinks his friend and team-mate can win the Ballon d'Or, a prize monopolised by Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi over the last nine years.

"We want to win a lot of trophies together at United and we also want to win the World Cup with France," Martial told MUTV.

The France international, who left Old Trafford for Juventus in 2012, was brought back to United for a then world-record fee by Jose Mourinho last year.

United and Pogba won three trophies - the Community Shield, League Cup and Europa League - last season, but they struggled to a sixth-place finish.

However, after more spending in this off-season, Pogba is looking to lead United in a title charge against champions Chelsea and rivals Manchester City.

Goals from Paul Pogba and Henrikh Mkhitaryan secured the trophy and a route back into the Champions League group stage for next season, while bringing some joy to fans in what has been a deeply difficult week for the English city.

The match was overshadowed by Monday's terror attack at the Manchester Arena, which killed 22 people, and a minute's silence was observed before kick-off in front of a boisterous but respectful crowd at Friends Arena.

Pogba has been slowly improving after a slow start to the season following his world record £93.25m move from Juventus in the summer.

Mourinho says any player would find the Premier League tough after four years in Italy, but is tipping him to be a Ballon d'Or contender next year, if the voters judge the players on more than goals.

Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho believes Paul Pogba is the world's best midfielder, but does not expect the France international to produce fireworks every week. 

While Pogba became the world's most expensive transfer with his move from Juventus to United, he is not expected to score as many goals as the likes of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. 

The 23-year-old midfielder returns after four years away, having left United for Juventus for £1.5m in 2012.

Pogba, who signed a five-year deal, added: "This is the right club for me to achieve everything I hope to in the game."

Jose Mourinho said Pogba would be "the heart of the club" for the next decade.

United will pay the Italian champions 105m euros for Pogba, plus performance-related bonuses and other costs.

It surpasses Wales forward Gareth Bale's £85m move to Real Madrid in 2013 as the biggest transfer deal in history.