Gianluigi Buffon surprised by Manchester United decision over Paul Pogba

Juventus goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon has admitted that he could not understand why Manchester United allowed Paul Pogba to leave Old Trafford in 2012.

Pogba joined Juventus on a free transfer after growing frustrated with a lack of first-team opportunities at United, and Buffon claims that it quickly became obvious to his new employers that Sir Alex Ferguson was wrong not to include the Frenchman in his plans.

"I have been in football many years but the decision of Sir Alex Ferguson and Manchester United to not play Pogba and let him leave is one of the strangest decisions I have ever seen," the Italian goalkeeper told The Express.

"Just after a few training sessions, we saw how good he was. It cannot have been the same player they saw in Manchester – we thought they maybe needed glasses.

"Pogba can do things only Pogba can, similar to [Lionel] Messi and [Cristiano] Ronaldo. United let one of the top players in the world leave but that has only been good news for us."

Recent reports have suggested that Manchester City are leading the race to sign the 22-year-old in the summer window.