Paul Pogba says the people of Manchester have to fight the threat of terrorism and never give up.
In an interview with Esquire magazine, Pogba spoke for the first time about life in the city as a muslim a year on from his world-record transfer to Manchester United from Juventus.
The French midfielder admitted the terrorist attack on the Ariana Grande concert at the Manchester Arena in May was a “difficult moment” for his adopted hometown but that the city must not be cowed by such actions.
“It’s a very difficult moment but you cannot give up,” he said. “We can’t let them get in our heads – we have to fight for it.
“Sad things happen in life but you cannot stop living.
“You cannot kill a human being. To kill a human being… it’s something crazy, so I don’t want to put religion on it.
“This is not Islam and everybody knows that. I won’t be the only one saying that.”
Pogba returned to Manchester four years after initially leaving United following his time in their youth system but always felt he would return.
Four years in Italian football and an £89m transfer later and Pogba was back in the city, where he is now even speaking like a native.
“At first, I couldn’t even understand my team-mates with their Mancunian accents,” he said.
“They’d speak fast and I’d say, ‘Speak slow, slow… ‘ I couldn’t speak. My friends right now, they laugh at me.
“They say, ‘Oh, I remember the first days, you couldn’t speak. And now, you just speak better than us. You speak Mancunian with the accent!’ So it’s funny.”
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