Manchester United news: Paul Pogba's move was not motivated by money, says Romelu Lukaku

The pair were on holiday together when Pogba signed

Pogba returned to Old Trafford two years after he left the club (Getty)

Paul Pogba was motivated by emotion and not money when making his world-record move from Juventus to Manchester United, according to Everton striker Romelu Lukaku.

The Frenchman re-joined United in an £89m deal four years after leaving Old Trafford on a free under former boss Sir Alex Ferguson, who fell out with Pogba’s agent Mino Raiola.

The 23-year-old is on around £290,000-a-week, as well as receiving a substantial signing-on fee from the Red Devils, but Lukaku, who is a close friend and holidayed with Pogba in the United States during the summer, said him signing was an emotional affair.

"A lot of things are said about him, but I was there at the hotel when he signed for United,” Lukaku told Belgium’s Sport/Foot magazine.

"There were maybe ten people surrounding him with briefcases and contracts inside.

"When everything was signed - and I've known Paul for many years - I've never seen him with that look on his face. I'd never seen him so happy. This return to United, it had nothing to do with money.”

Pogba has come in for criticism for his slow start to his second Old Trafford spell but has improved in recent weeks as Jose Mourinho played him in a more advanced role as opposed to a box-to-box midfielder.

And Lukaku, who had also been linked with a move to United in the summer, said that Pogba showed “real happiness” when finalising the transfer.

He added: "We only spoke once about football during our holidays this summer, when we were at a pool in LA, and he was telling me about his dream to return to United. That's when I understood what it meant."