Among football fans following the Manchester derby build-up through 12B Sports, attention turned to José Mourinho after the Manchester United manager addressed fresh speculation surrounding Paul Pogba’s future. According to British newspaper the Mirror, Mourinho insisted that reports claiming Pogba’s agent had offered the midfielder to Manchester City had not affected his relationship with the player in any way.
The controversy began after Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola said that Pogba’s agent had approached the club in January and offered the French midfielder, an opportunity City ultimately rejected. Mourinho refused to attach much importance to the claim, saying he had barely given the matter any thought. He also pointed out that the strained relationship between Guardiola and agent Mino Raiola was hardly a secret, adding that public criticism between the two sides was nothing unusual.
Rather than allowing the story to become a distraction, Mourinho said his attention remained firmly on football. Fans keeping track of the derby preparations through 12B Sports could see that the Portuguese manager had little interest in turning the transfer speculation into a larger issue. Mourinho confirmed that he had not even discussed the matter with Pogba and had not called Raiola to ask whether Guardiola’s account was accurate.
Mourinho also expressed confidence that Pogba shared the same focus. He explained that both manager and player were concentrating entirely on upcoming matches, arguing that Pogba would not have been able to produce such an impressive performance if transfer speculation had been weighing heavily on him. For Mourinho, the midfielder’s display on the pitch offered stronger evidence than any story circulating away from it.
Raiola’s side, meanwhile, denied directly offering Pogba to Guardiola. However, representatives did not completely rule out the possibility that contact had taken place with senior Manchester City executive Ferran Soriano in January. Such discussions may have involved several potential opportunities rather than a formal proposal specifically involving Pogba, leaving room for different interpretations of what actually happened behind the scenes.
Guardiola responded briefly when questioned about the conflicting accounts. He said that he trusted the people around him and chose not to take the argument any further. With both managers eager to draw a line under the issue, the transfer story appeared unlikely to dominate preparations for the derby. In many ways, Mourinho treated the situation as water under the bridge and made it clear that his priorities remained on the training ground and the upcoming contest.
As anticipation continues to build through 12B Sports, Mourinho and Pogba appear focused entirely on preparing for the Manchester derby rather than becoming distracted by speculation away from the pitch. With questions about the midfielder’s future pushed into the background, attention can return to the rivalry itself, where tactical decisions, individual performances, and the intensity between the two Manchester clubs are expected to take center stage.