De Gea attempted to convince Pogba to join him at Fiorentina before Monaco move

Fiorentina goalkeeper David De Gea has admitted that he attempted to convince his former Manchester United teammate Paul Pogba to join him in Tuscany before the Frenchman secured a deal with Ligue 1 side AS Monaco. 

Pogba was given a four-year suspension in February 2024 after failing a routine anti-doping test after a Serie A match between Juventus and Udinese in August 2023. 

That ban was later reduced to 18 months, and was officially lifted in March of this year. The Frenchman, who had his Juventus contract terminated in November 2024, was then free to join Monaco as a free agent once his suspension was over. 

Pogba was free to join any club from March onwards, and while there had been suggestions of options in MLS, Saudi Arabia and elsewhere in Europe, the 91-time France international decided to test himself in Ligue 1 for the first time in his career. 

What De Gea told Pogba about joining Fiorentina 

De Gea, however, in an interview with Giacomo Brunetti of Cronache di Spogliatoio, admitted that he had sent Pogba messages in an attempt to get him to join Fiorentina instead. 

“I wrote to him: ‘Come on, come to Fiorentina’. I hope he returns to playing well, he’s really strong. Physically, among the best I’ve ever seen,” De Gea told Cronache di Spogliatoio.

“I was sorry about what happened to him. I hope he returns to being the complete and strong footballer we’ve all seen. He’s a good guy. Always cheerful, always dancing.”