Paul Pogba often cut an unhappy figure at Old Trafford, especially in the past couple of seasons, but the 29-year-old Frenchman could barely contain the smiles as he explained his return to Juventus on Tuesday.
“At Juve, I’m at home,” he said at his ‘welcome back’ press conference, six years after his departure for Manchester United.
Pogba completed his move on Monday, joining on a free transfer and signing a four year deal which will earn him a reported eight million euros ($8.12 million) a season plus a potential two million euros in bonuses.
“I’m very happy to come back home because I really feel at home here. You saw how people received me, it was more than a dream for me,” he said.
Pogba wound down his contract with United who he joined in 2016 for a then record fee of 105 million euros to rejoin Juve where he achieved considerable success during his previous spell with the club.
From 2012 to 2016 he helped Juve win four Serie A titles and two Italian Cups, and reach the Champions League final in 2015.
With United he won the English League Cup and Europa League in his first season but nothing since, leading him to cut a distant figure as coaches came and went.
In spite of that, Pogba said he has no regrets about his time in Manchester.
“No, never. I believe in destiny. All the choices I made, I’m happy, life is like that,” he said.
“Sometimes you make choices that don’t give you satisfaction, but I’m happy for those years.
“In Manchester, I grew up. I learned. I became a man.”
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