Paul Pogba is determined to win his own star on the France shirt by beating Croatia in the 2018 World Cup final – 20 years on from his country’s only triumph.
Didier Deschamps led Les Bleus to glory on home soil in 1998 as a player and has the chance to join an elite list to also lift the coveted trophy as a manager – a feat only achieved by Mario Zagallo and Franz Beckenbauer.
The Blazers, meanwhile, are competing in their first-ever final at a major tournament, having gotten close two decades ago when they reached the semi-finals as debutants before losing to the hosts.
But Pogba wants to etch his name into French football’s annals and help raise Deschamps’ status even further, although he admits that Zlatko Dalic’s side will have similar designs on Sunday in Moscow.
“Croatia do not have stars – they want one. They have done very well and they want the victory, like us,” the Manchester United midfielder told reporters.
“But I do not have a star. It’s on the shirt, but I did not win it. We want to go looking for it like all players. It will be a World Cup final, a great match, difficult.”
Pogba dismissed the notion that the Croatians are viewed as underdogs due to fatigue, having gone to extra time in all three of their knockout matches at the Russia spectacle.
“We are not thinking about it,” the 25-year-old added. “Croatia played a very tough match against England. They did not give up. They were losing 1-0 and came back.
“There are two teams and one cup. They have played 90 minutes more than us – I don’t know if it’s a disadvantage for them or if they’re going to want to show that they want to win even more.
“For me, we are not favourites. We did not forget the doubts about us at the beginning of the competition, about our ability to play together. We haven’t done anything yet.”
