Pogba Is My Brother From Another Mother – Evra

Imagine you could do an experiment. You could place Paul Pogba and Patrice Evra in front of a TV camera, interviewing each other with a mike. You agree that it would probably all go completely wrong, right? Well, that’s exactly what happened to Italian outlet RSI on Thursday evening after France beat Germany to qualify for the European Championship final.

It started well, with Pogba telling Evra that “the job was not finished and that they had to beat Portugal now.” And then they couldn’t help having a big laugh and sending a cheeky message to Max Allegri and Juventus, stating that if they were so motivated to beat Germany, it was also to get an extra week off so they would escape training and running at the Vinovo training ground with the fitness coaches. The two then burst out laughing.

Those two always laugh. They are the heart and soul of this French squad. At Clairefontaine, France’s HQ, their rooms are opposite each other. There is not a day when Pogba doesn’t knock on Evra’s door, whatever the time, whatever the reason. The other day, Pogba was filmed on camera waking up Evra to make him listen to the new hip-hop song he found on the Internet.

They then started dancing to another tune that has become the anthem of the tournament for the French players: “J’ai deconne,” from KeBlack, a young French rapper. They were singing, dancing and laughing. This is what Pogba and Evra bring to the squad off the pitch: Happiness, occasional silliness and more importantly, a relaxed mood.

They also help each other out. When France coach Didier Deschamps dropped Pogba for France’s second game of the tournament against Albania, the Juventus midfielder spent a lot of time with Evra thinking and talking about what he did wrong against Romania in the opening match. They sorted it out and since then, Pogba has been instrumental in France going from strength to strength in the competition.

Their relationship goes way beyond football friendship. “Paul is like my brother. We don’t have the same parents but I respect his mother like mine and his brothers like mine” said Evra to ESPN FC at the start of the tournament. Evra is 35 years old, 12 years older than Pogba and acts very much like a father figure, although Pogba calls him “Uncle.” Evra doesn’t play video games and for that Pogba has his other brother from another mother, Antoine Griezmann. But for everything else, Evra is there.

That means that Evra also has to deal with the cheeky side of Pogba. If you are wondering why the France left-back is wearing a little cast on his hand, it’s because of a training accident last week at Clairefontaine. He fell on the ground after a duel with Moussa Sissoko and twisted four fingers. Did Pogba go to comfort him? You bet. “You fell because you are too old and because you are too tired,” said Pogba laughing out loud while Steve Mandanda, Eliaquim Mangala and the medical staff surrounded Evra. Evra will never begrudge him for anything. To him, he is like a younger brother you forgive everything to. “I can’t tell him off,” he said to the camera after Pogba burst into his room the other day.

But the respect is always there. Pogba does everything Evra says. He listens to him, almost worships him and always respects him. “I will never forget the first time I saw him,” recalled Evra to ESPN FC. “It was in Manchester. I was on a cycling bike and he was scared to come and say hello to me. One day he came and said: ‘Hello mister Evra.’ And I said: ‘No Paul, don’t call me Mister Evra!’ That’s how the story started.”

That was seven years ago and they have never looked back. They have been reunited for the last two years now in Turin where they spend more time together than perhaps with their own families. They are also guiding France through a very successful Euro 2016 so far. There is one more step to go. A win on Sunday and you can bet there will be plenty more laughing.