PROFILE
When Manchester United face Saint-Etienne in the last 32 of the Europa League next spring, it will be a meeting of two clubs who have not met each other in competitive action for 40 years. It will also be the stage for a reunion as Paul Pogba – the world’s most expensive player – will face brother Florentin for the first time.
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A France international with a social media following of millions, Manchester United’s Pogba is one of the most renowned footballers on the planet. Older brother Florentin, meanwhile, has carved out a decent career for himself in France’s top flight but remains comparatively unheralded when compared to his superstar brother.
Aged 26, two-and-a-half years older than Paul, Florentin is also an international footballer, turning out for Guinea, where he was born along with twin brother Mathias, who plays for Sparta Rotterdam. By the time his younger sibling came along, the family had uprooted to France.
From the beginning, Paul was the golden child of the family, as Florentin explained in an interview with L’Equipe in September.
Asked who his mother’s favourite was, he replied: “It’s the smallest one [Paul]! It’s like that in every family isn’t it?
“He’s still in mum’s arms. He’s the darling, he knows it and can’t say anything against that! Often we say to my mother: ‘You're going to give him your breast!’”
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The relationship between the pair is clearly a strong one, and the opportunity to face each other is one that they have been waiting for throughout their careers. “We’ve thought about it, and it would be good to meet,” Florentin added. “I think we would have a laugh on the field, that I would tease him. I would say to the coach: ‘It’s my job to take care of the little one!’”
Now Pogba senior will have the opportunity to do just that as a rather special date has been written into the family diary.
While Paul’s journey to the top has been rapid since being deemed a wonderkid at Le Havre and being whisked away to Manchester United before finally attaining star status as Juventus, his centre-back brother has been forced to be rather more patient.
Florentin failed to make the grade at Celta, having moved to Spain as a teenager, and he returned to France with Sedan, where he made his senior debut as a Ligue 2 player in a 1-0 loss against Boulogne in 2011.
A move to Saint-Etienne followed two years later, and though he was linked to both Hull and Sunderland in the summer, he has never held down a regular berth at Stade Geoffroy-Guichard. He did play 24 times in the league last season, but so far this term he has featured only eight times in Le Championnat, having lost his position to Leo Lacroix.
Florentin boasts the same physical strength as his brother, but is thicker set and not as limber. Where Paul can be seen to race across the ground, Florentin stampedes, which can make him an intimidating opponent.
He may not have the grace or technical ability, but the same drive and determination is present in the elder Pogba, who is a confessed Arsenal fan. He also has the same penchant for outrageous hairstyles, though perhaps not quite to the same level.
Reaching the heights of Paul is beyond the capabilities of Florentin, so this encounter offers a unique chance for the brothers to cross paths as adversaries. Just as this promises to be a special occasion for Saint-Etienne, one of the grand old clubs of French football, it will be a moment to remember for the Pogba family, and big brother Florentin in particular.