Premier League news: Pogba and Lingard to leave Man United
Manchester United have announced that Paul Pogba and Jesse Lingard will leave the club once their contracts expire
Both players drew widespread attention as part of United's Youth Cup winning side of 2011.
Pogba departs again.
A statement on United's website reads: "The club can announce that Paul Pogba will leave Manchester United at the end of June, upon the expiry of his contract."
The Frenchman has enjoyed a long association with United, having joined the club's Academy from Le Havre at the age of just 16.
Pogba quickly progressed through the ranks, first impressing in the Under-18s and then swiftly moving upwards to the Reserves. In the 2011/2012 season, he made a few appearances. However, in the summer of 2012, due to strong competition for places at Old Trafford, Pogba joined Italian giants Juventus.
He quickly became a success at Juve as he helped them lift four consecutive Serie A titles and two Coppa Italias.
However, in 2016, he made the emotional decision to return to Old Trafford. First he starred in the 2017 League Cup final against Southampton. United moved on to the UEFA Europa League final in Solna, Stockholm a few months later, and it was Pogba who opened the scoring against Ajax, kickstarting a poignant 2-0 victory.
The subsequent 2017/18 season brought a promising second-placed finish, and arguably Paul's most admired performance in a red shirt – in the chaotic and memorable Manchester derby of April 2018.
Crosstown rivals City headed into the match at the Etihad knowing that a victory would hand them the title, and with United forced to stand by and watch the crowing celebrations that would inevitably follow.
United said "We found ourselves 2-0 down at half-time, with the Blues rampant. A torturous second half seemed imminent, but Pogba scored twice in quick succession to level the scores and silence the City crowd. Chris Smalling soon put United in front, completing one of the most remarkable turnarounds in derby history."
Spurred on by a career high of winning the World Cup with France, the next season, 2018/19, would prove the most prolific in Pogba's United career. He scored 16 goals in 47 appearances.
Injury problems resulted in just 22 appearances across all competitions in 2019/20, though United battled to a third-placed finish under Solskjaer.
The team's upward trajectory continued in 2020/21, where two memorable stunners from Pogba – at Turf Moor and Craven Cottage – propelled United to the top of the table in January 2021.
Paul was also instrumental in Europe. Coming on at half-time in our Europa League round-of-16 second leg against AC Milan, he produced a sublime solo goal in the San Siro, edging United 2-1 ahead on aggregate and delivering the tie's decisive moment.
He scored again in the semi-final against Roma, but was unable to prevent the Reds slipping to an agonising 11-10 penalty shootout defeat against Villarreal in the Gdansk final.
Pogba's final season at the club started off in hugely promising fashion, with an astonishing four assists in our opening-day thrashing of Leeds United, but more injury problems would ultimately derail his ambitions.
The Frenchman made just 27 appearances under Solskjaer and the Norwegian's replacement, interim manager Ralf Rangnick, and the last of his 233 United games ended in the 10th minute of a defeat at Anfield in April 2022.
The statement ends: "It was a low-key end to a United career that had brought so many individual high moments, so many beautiful goals, assists and pieces of skill."
Lingard bids farewell
United released a similar statement for Jesse Lingard.
Jesse Lingard to leave Man Utd | Manchester United
An Academy graduate and dyed-in-the-wool Red, Jesse has been with United for over 20 years, having originally joined our Under-9s team in 2001.
He was a key member of Warren Joyce’s FA Youth Cup-winning side in 2011, scoring in the first leg of the 6-3 aggregate final victory over Sheffield United.
Following various loan spells in the Championship, Jesse made his United debut under Louis van Gaal in 2014 and became a regular presence in the first team the following season.
He scored six goals in 40 appearances across all competitions during that 2015/16 campaign, including a stunning extra-time winner at Wembley as United came from behind to beat Crystal Palace in the FA Cup final and seal a 12th triumph in the competition.
Talking about the part he played in United's success, they said: "Two further strikes at the national stadium in 2016/17 helped the Reds capture the Community Shield and EFL Cup, while Lingard was on the pitch alongside friend and fellow homegrown star Marcus Rashford in May 2017, helping us make history in Stockholm by clinching the Europa League – the only major title missing from our trophy cabinet."
It was a milestone campaign for Jesse, as he signed a new long-term contract with United and made his senior England debut in a 2-0 win over Malta in October 2016.
Jesse passed the landmark of 100 appearances for the club a year later and enjoyed arguably the best spell of United career either side of Christmas in 2017, netting nine goals across a 13-game period for Jose Mourinho’s side to claim our Player of the Month prize.
He caught the eye while on loan at West Ham United during the second half of the 2020/21 term, scoring nine times in 16 games to help David Moyes’s side to a Europa League spot.
Lingard returned to United after the summer and he came back to haunt the Hammers, curling home an 89th-minute winner in a dramatic contest at the London Stadium.
EPL: West Ham United 1 - 2 Manchester United (eurosuperfootball.blogspot.com)
This goal would turn out to be the last of 35 strikes for the club he first came to as an eight-year-old. Now, aged 29, he leaves with 232 United appearances and 32 England caps under his belt.
They conclude the statement: "We’d like to take this opportunity to thank Jesse for all of the memories he’s helped create during his two decades here and wish him the best of luck in his future career."
