In Mr. Fassou’s living room hangs a photo of Paul with his younger twin brothers, Mathias and Florentin, both playing for Partick Thistle and St-Etienne, respectively. Another picture captures the trio during Christmas in 1998, seated inside Santa Claus’s cave.

Now 78 years old, Mr. Fassou came to Paris at the age of 30 from Guinea. He worked in the telecommunications industry and is now retired. The elderly man hopes to travel to Manchester to watch Paul play for the team he has returned to. Fassou himself played football in Guinea, and opportunities dwindled when he arrived in Paris.

I played at a lower level than desired. I wanted my son to play at the highest level possible. I coached other kids to be able to provide Paul with a match when he was 4, 5, 6 years old,” Mr. Fassou recalled.

“Meanwhile, Paul absorbed it better and played with older kids, including his two older brothers. At Residence la Renardiere (where the Pogba family initially lived), every child played football all day. As a child back then, he knew he wanted to become a professional football player.”

For a kid at Renardiere, there was only one place in Roissy-en-Brie to organize an 11-a-side football match. Stade Paul Bessuard became the home of US Roissy, a small football club, where dreams turned into reality.

At Stade Paul Bessuard, I met Nicolas Moressee, 40, treasurer and coach of the U-17 team at US Roissy, and coach of the U17 team. It’s easy to learn about Pogba’s former pupil from him.

You came here to talk about Paul? Well, you better step into this room, and you’ll see everything.” Moressee led me into a small office with three rooms, filled with trophies, an old washing machine, and more.

In the back, there’s a table with light snacks, instant coffee, plastic cups, and on the wall, framed professional jerseys of the three Pogba brothers, as well as jerseys from other famous former kids, like Nicolas Isimat-Mirin – a forward currently playing at PSV Eindhoven. In the middle of the wall hangs one of Pogba’s Juventus jerseys with the message: ‘For the dream club of my youth… Roissy-en-Brie.’

“Paul comes back to visit here a lot,” Moressee said. “He was here on a Sunday.” Sunday? A day before he flew to Manchester for his medical checkup? “Exactly.” What did he do? “What he always does, play football with his friends.

As the club treasurer, Moressee is eagerly awaiting positive news from the French Football Association regarding the training fee payment for Roissy, thanks to Pogba’s transfer to Man Utd.

According to FIFA regulations, any club that trains and develops a player aged 12 or older is entitled to 0.25% of the transfer fee for each year of training that the player received. Since Paul was at Roissy from ages 6 to 13, the club will receive £400,000.

For a team with an annual budget of around £60,000, this is a significant amount. Roissy may be able to purchase a minibus, new equipment, a washing machine, and provide allowances for away trips – crucial resources as very few players have parents who can drive them to matches.

There’s also an additional place to explore the factors shaping Pogba’s development – his actual home ground: Residence la Renardiere, a short distance from Stade Paul Bessuard. Here, the Pogba brothers grew up with their mother Yeo, who had a significant influence on the careers of all her sons.

Renardiere may appear modest compared to the standards of the French middle class, but it poses few threats. The people are friendly and welcoming everywhere, and children of all ages play football.

The majority of the people here, as explained by 16-year-old Ahmed Diawara, are first or second-generation immigrants from French-speaking countries in Central Africa.

The Diawara family hails from Mali, while the family of Boubacan Dioumanera, also 16, comes from Senegal. On the other hand, the Pogba family has roots in Guinea. Both teenagers are too young to have played football with Paul when the star lived in Renardiere, but they enthusiastically talk about the times when Pogba returned to visit.

From an outsider’s perspective, it’s not too difficult to believe that Renardiere could produce a player like Pogba. It serves as the perfect challenge for talent to flourish: children play football day and night, in a safe and happy environment without the need for additional parental supervision.