'Mourinho didn't want Pogba, they signed him for commercial reasons'

The Frenchman is currently out of favour at Old Trafford following a series of well-publicised falling-outs with his manager, though it is thought that United plan to hold onto him at least until the summer.

Much has been made about the relationship between the pair, but Parames has now claimed that Mourinho never wanted to sign the player in the first place, only to be forced to do so due to commercial reasons, with the playmaker recouping his £89m fee within the first six months.

"It's no coincidence that both have already been severely criticised by several coaches," Parames wrote in his column in Portuguese publication 'Record', comparing the France star to Mario Balotelli.

"Of course some will ask whether the person who hired them did not know what their personalities were like.

"Yes is the answer, but sometimes there are reasons beyond sports that lead the clubs, and not always the coaches, to gamble on hiring them.

"Pogba, for example, is worth a lot in the advertising market, so much so that in just six months Manchester United had already recovered what they had invested in him.

"However, without terriers like (Blaise) Matuidi and (N'Golo) Kante at his side, he is worth ­virtually nothing on the field.

"Man United did not give Mourinho terriers despite advice given to (Ed) Woodward last summer. 

"And as a result, we had to see Nemanja Matic and Scott McTominay acting as central defenders against Southampton.

"And Mourinho had to watch as Pogba became the player who most often lost the ball and was dispossessed, in a single game, in all Premier League matches this season. A great record!

"For the Fulham game on Saturday Mourinho finally showed that he was fed up and left Pogba on the bench. 

"Is there another coach capable of doing this to a world champion? I do not believe so, but the truth is that the team, without the 'virus', was much better, won and even played reasonably well.

"The Valencia game, while strictly deciding nothing, can decide the future of the Frenchman in the team.

"And if there's a truckload of pounds out there..."