Paul Pogba gives inspirational France team talk before firing them to glory in World Cup final
Pogba urged his team-mates to get the job done for their families and put their Euro 2016 heartbreak behind them
PAUL POGBA urged his France team-mates to use the pain of losing the Euro 2016 final to spur them on to World Cup glory.
TF1 footage has emerged of the Manchester United star, 25, giving an inspirational team talk at the Luzhniki Stadium before they went out and beat Croatia 4-2.
Didier Deschamps gave a speech at half-time in which he told Les Bleus they needed to get the ball to Kylian Mbappe and nullify the threat of Mario Mandzukic.
Pogba’s rallying cry was less tactical before the match as he called for his team-mates to get the job done for their families – after France lost the Euro 2016 final to Portugal.
Pogba said: “Boys, I don’t want to talk too much. We all know where we are. We all know what we want.
“We know how far we have come, we know it in our hearts. In our eyes, I can see it boys. We are concentrated.
“We can not forget, maybe I am repeating myself, we are 90 minutes away from possibly creating history.
“Ninety minutes. One match. One match. I don’t know many matches we have played in our careers.
“But this is the one match that changes everything, that changes all of history.
“There are two team, there is one trophy. For them, the same. They want it.
“We know we lost a final two years ago. We know it, we feel it here. It’s still in our heads.
“Today we are not going to let another team take what is ours.
“Tonight I want us to be in the memory of all the French people who are watching us. Their kids, their grandkids, even their great grandkids.
“I want us to go on the pitch as warriors, as leaders.”
Pogba, who scored France’s third goal in the final, was hailed for his leadership by Adil Rami – who retired from international action after the Moscow triumph.
Midfielder Pogba also gave a half-time speech in the last-16 win over Uruguay.
Rami revealed: “I can tell you that Paul Pogba — and I don’t know how and I don’t know from where — became a leader.
“He proved it to us. He’s a very technical player, he has a lot of talent, but he managed to battle in defence.
“Everyone loves players who do step-overs, nutmegs, but today, Paul has become a leader.
“He’s the one who showed us the way. Everyone wants to see nutmegs but that’s not what football’s about. You have to sweat, you have to donate your body to science.
“Paul showed maturity. Technique is great but mental strength is more important.”