If Raiola has offered Pogba to City, the price just went up – Mourinho

Pep Guardiola said on Friday he had been offered Paul Pogba in January, but Jose Mourinho joked his price has gone up after derby heroics.

Jose Mourinho said the price for Paul Pogba has "gone up" following his two-goal performance in the Manchester derby after Pep Guardiola claimed that the Frenchman was offered to Manchester City in January.

Guardiola dropped something of a pre-derby bombshell on Friday in his news conference when he told reporters he had been offered Pogba by his agent Mino Raiola during the January transfer window.

Pogba has endured a turbulent season at Manchester United due to inconsistent form and reported disagreements with Mourinho, but he was vital to their 3-2 win at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday that denied City the chance to be crowned champions. 

United found themselves 2-0 down at half-time, but two goals from Pogba stunned City just after the break and then Chris Smalling got the winner.

And Mourinho joked that Pogba's price has increased after his derby heroics.

"They were two fantastic goals," Mourinho told Sky Sports.

"If it's true that his agent offers him to some clubs, the price has now gone up."

United were on the ropes at half-time and looked to be on their way to a humiliating defeat as City closed in on the victory which would have clinched them the Premier League title.

And Mourinho highlighted the performances of his centre-back and wingers as being not good enough in the first period, before insisting he was happy with Pogba's display.

"I told the players at half-time that my midfield couldn't play better than they were," he added.

"It's difficult to play against them [City] because they press really well. They're compact and their transition is really strong.

"I told Nemanja Matic, Ander Herrera and Paul they couldn't improve a lot form the first half. They had confidence to play the ball, move.

"I was asking more especially from my central defenders, because they were shaky with the ball at their feet, made sloppy passes, mistakes.

"I wanted more from the wingers, to come inside and give more solutions to midfield players.

"So we improved in the second half with that, I was not asking for Paul to improve because I was already happy with him."