Manchester United’s Anthony Martial has made the bold claim that team-mate Paul Pogba is the “best midfielder in the world”.

Pogba, an international team-mate of Martial with France, joined United from Juventus for a club record fee of £89 million in the summer of 2016.

Since his switch to Old Trafford, the 24-year-old has failed on the whole to replicate the kind of form he showed in Serie A that warranted his world record move to Manchester.

Pogba has come under plenty of criticism for his performances as of late, including from his manager Jose Mourinho, who only last month dropped him from the first-team squad to bring in youngsters Jame McTominay.

Despite his critics however, team-mate Anthony Martial insists Pogba is the real deal and expects him to scoop football’s biggest individual prize in the coming years if he continues to improve.

“I would say Paul is probably the best midfield player in the world,” Martial is quoted by the Daily Star.

“Paul is very strong mentally and very sure of himself. He’s a big guy, he is very technical on the ball and has lots of endurance.

“And he’s still young, so he has a lot to work on and he can get even better.

“If he continues to improve, then I think he’s going to win the Ballon d’Or award in the next five years.”