As Paul Pogba is close to returning to professional football, Manchester United have the Frenchman to thank following the rise of Amad at the club.

Amad joined United from Atalanta in 2021 in a deal worth up to £37million, leaving fans suspicious of such a hefty price tag for a player who had shown little up until that point. The 22-year-old struggled to get into the United first team regularly initially which led him to join Rangers and Sunderland on loan, respectively.

Upon returning to Old Trafford, he launched his career with a legendary quarter-final striker against Liverpool back in March. Amad was later competing against Alejandro Garnacho and has been a breath of fresh air for the club this season.

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United have relied on Amad, Bruno Fernandes and Lisandro Martinez to score goals this term, with Rasmus Hojlund and Joshua Zirkzee not showing any signs of ending their respective droughts in front of goal. Amad has scored four of United's ten goals so far this calendar year.

So much so that he was recently awarded a new long-term deal, penning an extension until the summer of 2030.

As Amad is keen to continue being a valuable player at Old Trafford, Pogba was the reason he signed for the Reds. "I met him when I was a kid at that trial at Juventus," Amad explained.

"After the session, they asked me who I would like to have a photo with, and I asked for Paul. He was my idol! Then, when I received the bid from United and I realised that Paul was here, I didn’t have to think twice and I wanted to come here straight away.

"To be playing with him five years later is incredible. I could not possibly ever imagine it happening. But these things happen once in a lifetime and, when such occasions come along, you have to seize them. To play with Paul five years later is unbelievable, and hard to describe, really."

Pogba meanwhile, is free to return to professional football in March after serving an 18-month ban for testing positive for the banned substance DHEA. Pogba was initially handed a four-year ban, but that was reduced on appeal.

The midfielder has recently sent supporters into a frenzy, sharing a caricature image of himself and Amad on his Instagram stories - with some fans hoping it could be something of a transfer hint about a potential return to Old Trafford. After Pogba helped United sign Amad, it could be time for him to return the favour.