Jamie Carragher United must not indulge Pogba
French midfielder cannot be viewed in the same light as players such as De Bruyne due to a lack of tactical nous and knowledge of his position
Every so often, players come along who are brilliant but flawed. Such is their ability to decide games, their weaknesses have to be accepted and a team built around them. Does Paul Pogba come into this category at Manchester United? No. He has not done enough at Old Trafford to warrant such special status.
Whenever I watch Pogba, I cannot help recall an observation by Arrigo Sacchi, the legendary former AC Milan manager. He said a great talent does not make you a great player.
“When I was director of football at Real Madrid, we had some who were very good footballers,” Sacchi said. “They had technique, they had athleticism, but they lacked what I call ‘knowing how to play football’. They lacked decisionmaking. They lacked positioning. They didn’t have the subtle sensitivity of football: how a player should move within the collective. And, for many, I wasn’t sure they were going to learn. You see, strength, passion, technique, athleticism, all of these are very important. But they are a means to an end, not an end in itself.”
Sacchi could have been dissecting Pogba’s United performances in the past two seasons. The concern for Jose Mourinho is that the criticism of Pogba is familiar.
Go back to Sept 10, 2016, when United were beaten at home against Manchester City, but comprehensively outplayed in their 2-1 defeat.
On the Monday Night Football show on Sky, I expressed dismay that a player of his expense and pedigree showed such startling lack of understanding of centralmidfield responsibilities. It was frightening how poor Pogba was.
At that early stage, Mourinho – one of the most tactically astute managers in the world – would have been alarmed.
I can imagine Mourinho trying to get into Pogba’s head about what was required. Here we are, 18 months on, and nothing has changed. In recent away games against Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal, Pogba made the same mistakes. This time, it is more serious because it shows he is either unwilling or incapable of absorbing information from his manager.
Pogba’s performance against Arsenal in December summed him up. United won 3-1 and he was instrumental in the victory, a surging run from midfield creating one of the goals.
Below the surface, it was an imperfect performance, Arsenal managing 33 shots on goal – a staggering, unprecedented statistic against a Mourinho team, especially in a fixture of such stature. Only David de Gea producing the finest display I have ever witnessed from a Premier League goalkeeper prevented Arsenal scoring four or five. What was United’s biggest problem that afternoon? Pogba consistently deserting his centre-midfield post.
The solution, it is argued, is to play him in his favoured position to the left of a
4-3-3, where he enjoyed success at Juventus. I agree and Mourinho has often used him there. He has more freedom to roam; there is more protection of
United’s defence.
Many believe Pogba can do for United what Kevin De Bruyne does for Manchester City to the right of a 4-3-3.
Can he? Does Pep Guardiola give De Bruyne freedom to roam where he likes? No.
Does he absolve De Bruyne of defensive responsibility? No.
If the best midfielder in the country is not indulged, why should it be different for
Pogba?
De
Bruyne’s excellence this season is more than just as playmaker. In the past two seasons, De Bruyne not only has more goals and assists than Pogba, he has made more tackles and more recovery runs than his United rival.
A comparison with the City star is brutal, but is that not the standard by which United’s main man in midfield must be judged? It is not enough to be the best midfielder at Manchester United. On that stage, you have to be as good as, or better, than the best of your opponents. Prior to United’s recent defeat at Spurs, the broad view was Pogba was having a good season, much improved from last year. But eight goals in his past 47 Premier League games is not enough.
Now the signs are Mourinho is losing patience, as shown when he took off Pogba against Spurs and Newcastle, and then dropped him versus Sevilla. The noises from the player’s camp are not promising – especially when you hear rumours of his agent, Mino Raiola, expressing unhappiness about where Pogba is being played and touting him to other clubs.
Mourinho, empowered by a new contract, will not lose this battle. If performances were better, we know Mourinho would happily structure his side around Pogba. At Chelsea, rather than a traditional No 10, he had Frank Lampard contributing 20-plus goals a season – ideal for the 4-3-3 system.
Those are the kinds of return Pogba must get closer to, but there is no evidence he is that type of player. He scored 33 in 149 games for Juventus.
He is perceived as a “box-tobox” midfielder, but the reality is he is not good enough in either box.
His supporters have used one of his better games – away at Everton in January – to argue that is how Pogba should be used. I was inside Goodison Park that day and he was the best player on the pitch, but Everton were dreadful. The occasional flattrack