WHY PERCEPTION OF POGBA IS ALL WRONG
HOW do you judge a footballer? Do you make a decision on what you see from them on the pitch or do you have a perception beforehand and stick to it?
I’ll give you an example. N’Golo Kante is widely-regarded as a diamond. He’s a World Cup winner and does outstanding things for his club. He barely speaks, never causes an issue and just gets on with things. your perception of him, no doubt, will be that he is a good lad.
If I asked for your thoughts on paul pogba, though, I’d expect many of you would not be so generous. pogba gets negative headlines; he wears an earring and colours his hair. His character is different to Kante, he’s loud and stands out. How can he be a good lad?
I actually believe how pogba is perceived has clouded how he should be viewed as a footballer. He is every bit as talented as Kante and he showed it last week in Manchester United’s opening day thrashing of Leeds, with four assists in their 5-1 win. Some of his passing was as good as you will see.
I need to make it clear that there have been times since he has been at Old trafford that pogba has disappointed me. I played against him in March 2015, when he was Juventus and I was at Fiorentina, and I thought he came from another world.
there was a moment when I tried to get the ball off him and he flicked it over my head and ran away from me as if I wasn’t there. I thought I could outmuscle him but he is so strong and wiry, with gangly arms and legs, he just pushed me away. right foot, left foot, speed — he’s got it all.
When he signed for United, I thought to myself, ‘this is going to be mind-blowing’. perhaps if he had joined at a better time in the club’s history, when the team was settled, his situation would have been different now.
But it feels like everyone has looked at pogba and expected him to do everything for the team and when he didn’t, he was the only one at fault. the £89million price tag brought a lot of scrutiny and was supposed to be the catalyst to make United trophy winners again.
TO Be fair to him, pogba scored and was man of the match when they last lifted silverware in the 2017 europa League. It just feels now, though, that to an extent he will never be able to change people’s opinion of him. It’s a shame, really, as everything I get told about him is that he is a diamond in the dressing room, loved by his team-mates and a big influence on situations.
Ask yourself this: would raphael Varane have come to Manchester without speaking to pogba? that would have been the first call Varane made when he was leaving real Madrid — if pogba had expressed any misgivings, you can imagine his compatriot would most likely have waited for paris Saint-Germain.
yes, there are questions about pogba’s long-term future but has he done anything wrong? I’d argue not. He’s not personally spoken out against United, he’s not agitating. His display against Leeds never gave you a moment’s worry about him being committed to the team.
this isn’t like what is happening with Harry Kane and tottenham — there was an explanation for Kane not returning back to training when he should have done but, even still, Kane has been vocal in making it clear he wants to go.
We find it hard to criticise Kane because he is perceived as a good lad — he’s been widely perceived as a saint in his career — but we can’t duck away from the fact he is taking on his club with whom he is under contract until 2024. What would have happened to pogba if he had done this?
this, I must make it clear, is not an argument about race. My point about it all is that, in general, we are all too quick to make assumptions on footballers and then unwilling to change our minds later on.
What is true is that we all have sky-high expectations for pogba — never more so than after
that virtuoso performance seven days ago.
I’m fascinated because I want to see if he puts it together consistently, in a style I know he can.
If it doesn’t pan out that way, it will be nothing to do with his character.
‘He’s a diamond in the dressing room, loved by his team-mates’