José Mourinho has said Paul Pogba is a potential Manchester United captain, with the manager in no doubt the midfielder has all the attributes required to lead the team one day.

Pogba was signed for £89m from Juventus in the summer and after a slow start is becoming a dominant performer and showing why the club paid a world-record fee.

Wayne Rooney is the captain, although he is no longer first-choice and may be on the bench again on Sunday for the visit of Liverpool, who are second in the table, five points ahead of United.

Asked if Pogba could lead the club, Mourinho said: “I think he has the potential. I think he has the charisma. The ambition. The mentality. He is a good professional. Being so young and with so many ingredients, I think he can.”

Despite Pogba becoming a key member of his side, Mourinho was careful not to put any added pressure on the player to perform against Liverpool. “It is not fair to say a player has to be dominant,” he said.

“He is playing amazingly well, no doubts about it, but the team is also playing well. I am not expecting the team to play really bad and for one player to have all the weight on his shoulders, not Paul, not anyone. I expect the team to play well and Paul to be at the level he is playing now regularly.”

The player praised Mourinho’s man-management of him since his return to Old Trafford from Italy. “He told me not to listen to anybody, just be focused on the pitch and enjoy yourself. That is all I am doing,” the 23-year-old told the BBC’s Football Focus. “He talked to me. He made me very comfortable and confident.

“He said: ‘You know how to play, do what you want.’ He let me free on the pitch. He told me just to enjoy myself. That is it. That is all I need to hear from the manager.”

Paddy Crerand, who won the league title and European Cup in the same United side as Sir Bobby Charlton in the 1960s, praised Pogba by comparing him to the club’s joint-top scorer.

“Paul Pogba is just a special player,” Crerand said. “He is one of those that demands the ball all the time. Sometimes, if things don’t go right, one or two might hide for a little spell but he wants it constantly.

“You know who was the same? Bobby Charlton. If he made a mistake, he still wanted it. Others might go into their shell for a bit but he never would. Paul’s the same and I think he’s fantastic.”

United start the weekend 10 points behind the leaders Chelsea but Pogba is confident they can catch up and win the title. “You have to believe. We are not far off,” he said.

“I know Chelsea are at the top but this is the Premier League, you never know what is going to happen. You have to keep fighting and believing. Inside I feel we can still win the league. The team is getting better and better. We all know each other now so we feel much better than we did at the start of the season.”

Regarding whether the match with their north-west rivals, whose 18 titles puts them second to United’s 20, is still English football’s biggest game, Mourinho said: “I don’t know. I know Manchester United is the biggest club in this country. I know, you know, everybody knows. I am sorry. It is easy to know.

“I can feel the rivalry is big and for sure, it is a big match. Around the world, people will look to this match with special eyes, that’s for sure.”