paul pogba is not worth the amount juventus are asking for says scholes

The ex-Manchester United star believes only players like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo are worthy of such a gigantic price-tag, insisting the midfielder is not at that level

Paul Scholes believes Manchester United will be paying over the odds if they sign Paul Pogba from Juventus for a world-record transfer fee.

Goal understands the 23-year-old is now close to joining United for €110m (£92m) from Juventus, who he joined on a free transfer in 2012.

Scholes is a fan of Pogba's abilities but feels such a hefty price tag would suggest he is at the same level as Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, and he does not believe the France international can be considered as good as the Barcelona and Real Madrid stars just yet.

"He was a very talented player," Scholes told reporters when discussing Pogba's fledgling United days. "I played with him quite a lot. 

If you ask me, at that time his agent was asking for a lot of money for a player who did not play first-team football except once or twice. 

"Okay, he has gone on to great things and there was a massive improvement in him. I just don't think he is a player worth £100m-plus right now. 

"For that money, you would need a player who scores 50-plus goals a season, like Ronaldo or Messi. Pogba is not there yet."

Jose Mourinho has added Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Henrikh Mkhitaryan to his attacking options for the forthcoming season and Scholes feels both men will have points to prove.

"I haven't seen much of Mkhitaryan but he seems to be a good player," he said.

"With Ibrahimovic, he was playing at PSG and there were a lot of chances created and it was easy to score in that league.