[finneh]

His last full season (18/19) he had our highest whoscored rating of any outfield player, got 13 goals and 9 assists and was - at least to my memory - easily our best midfielder in a pretty mediocre team.
So if you'd like to say today was the same performance as that season, I'd like to say you've no idea what you're talking about, and recency bias has clearly clouded any sense of objectivity you have.

Weren't 8 of those penalties?

 

[Nickelodeon]

His reputation is much higher than his performances ever are. I have a pattern of discussion with my Liverpool supporting brother where I give the same opinion for Firmino. At least, Firmino has the luxury of having others who are significantly better than him. Pogba will never be the leader or the player who takes the game by the scruff of the neck. He will always be the cherry on top. And that’s just not good enough for what we need right now.

 

[Maureen-yo]

If he has always been two footed then can you tell me how many goals he has scored with his left foot apart from the WC goal as that is how I judge a two footed attacking player.
Your comment about it not being his best game I agree with as I think it is his average game in a Utd shirt but his passing was piss poor and belongs with the sewage outfall well off Bondi Beach.

Do you not watch the matches? Pogba is about as two footed as they come, his passing range with both feet is phenomenal.

 

[Bobcat]

Been one of Pogba biggest supporter over the years, his ability to create magic is unrivalled but weirdly am beginning to understand Souness frustration about Pogba,he is great at the spectacular but struggles with the basic,there was a moment in the game Pogba misplaced a pass,Bruno who was ahead of Pogba but tracked the runner back into our half and made the recovering tackle while Pogba strolled back,it sums him up perfectly... He isn't tidy enough with his passes and isn't discipline enough to work hard,a forward could get away with that but not a midfielder, the reason we never find a perfect Pogba partner is beginning to look like its because Pogba is impossible to partner successfully,if we had started with Fred VDB and Bruno our midfield would have had more dynamism and rhythm on and off the ball,Sourness seem to be right when he said Pogba would only be great if he was used as an impact sub.He looks atm like a luxury we can't keep going on with, am not sure if my reaction is knee-jerk or I've come into a huge realisation

Spot on and i know exactly what situation you are referring to. Bruno has not turned into a fan favorite overnight just because of talent, its also because he gives 100% each and every game, shows genuine passion and leadership despite only being here half a year.

Lack of match fitness is not an excuse. No one is match fit right now.

 

[TsuWave]

Because Pogba is supposed to be the star player in this team so of course expectations are higher on him than say James who was bought as a squad option. Even ignoring all the drama around Pogba, he has never shown the consistency of a supposed world class CM. Sure, there are patches here and there when hes unreal and shows the level of talent he possesses, but when hes not on form his performances swing from mediocre to absolute liability.

If another club came with a decent bid for him i would have shipped him off ASAP. Much rather have a CM who is consistently solid and can deliver 7-8/10 performances on a weekly basis rather than one who constantly fluctuates between 10/10 and 1/10

If you watched yesterday’s game and decided the Pogba thread is where you need to go bang your keyboard in frustration then you’re just a weirdo to me, and none of that he’s supposed to be the star player nonsense justifies it.

Yesterday your captain, his defensive partner, the left back, and the defensive midfielder had arguably some of the worst showings for United players this decade, but it’s here where you’re choosing to move your furniture to?

 

[OrcaFat]

If you watched yesterday’s game and decided the Pogba thread is where you need to go bang your keyboard in frustration then you’re just a weirdo to me, and none of that he’s supposed to be the star player nonsense justifies it.

Yesterday your captain, his defensive partner, the left back, and the defensive midfielder had arguably some of the worst showings for United players this decade, but it’s here where you’re choosing to move your furniture to?

Probably every thread is full of frustrated comments. No matter how poor the rest of them were, Pogba was poor in an infuriating way. He is a very talented player who, more often than not, contributes very little, puts his team mates in trouble by being caught in possession or misplacing easy passes and looks like he doesn’t care. Yesterday was the archetypal Pogba performance. We just can’t afford to carry someone like that.

When he’s good he’s sublime but it is so rare.

 

[izec]

Not match fit, but starts. Ole is a weirdo. Just play van de Beek

 

[Norris]

Probably every thread is full of frustrated comments. No matter how poor the rest of them were, Pogba was poor in an infuriating way. He is a very talented player who, more often than not, contributes very little, puts his team mates in trouble by being caught in possession or misplacing easy passes and looks like he doesn’t care. Yesterday was the archetypal Pogba performance. We just can’t afford to carry someone like that.

When he’s good he’s sublime but it is so rare.

He was in quarantine for two weeks. Don't think any level of individual training you can do will be enough for being match ready in a weeks time.

 

[ClaytonBlackmoorLeftPeg]

Every player thread, bar DDG (surprisingly) is the same.

Yesterday’s match is not the one to judge him on.

How much training did he have, he was isolating for a couple of weeks due to a positive CV test.

He was poor, but so was everyone else. You can’t take a lot from yesterday when looking at individual players.

Hopefully it’s a massive kick up the arse for him and everyone else. I would urge everyone to reserve judgement.

 

[Norris]

Not match fit, but starts. Ole is a weirdo. Just play van de Beek

He was also not match fit. Played 30 odd minutes of internationals and his last game before that was in March/April.

 

[M Bison]

Thought he was very poor yesterday, he is incapable of keeping it simple and has a bizarre obsession with trying to switch play with his wrong foot, and it meant he gave it away a number of times.

He's a problem for Ole, difficult player to drop but shouldn't be in the side at the moment, Fred looks a better option.

 

[Haddock]

I'm getting tired of defending him and I think I'm beginning to see Souness' point. Great player but there are too many of these performances where he takes ten touches and passes it to the opposition, often in our half. The only player who can get away with appalling five and ten yard passes is a forward who scores. Not a midfielder. I don't expect Pogba to score 20 goals and rack up 20 assists, I don't expect him to score even 8 goals a season and I don't even mind him giving the ball away if he attempts a serious through ball. I only want him to play the odd incisive pass and get the ball and keep it moving fast (which he does brilliantly for France) instead of slowing the play down when we are desperate for a goal. He seems to be utterly unable to read the situation at times.

If he can't fulfill that basic expectation then....

 

[Maureen-yo]

Thought he was very poor yesterday, he is incapable of keeping it simple and has a bizarre obsession with trying to switch play with his wrong foot, and it meant he gave it away a number of times.

He's a problem for Ole, difficult player to drop but shouldn't be in the side at the moment, Fred looks a better option.

While I agree with you that yesterday’s performance was woeful, to say that he is incapable of keeping it simple just isn’t correct. When you watch him for France that’s exactly what he does because he is coached to do so; it seems he is asked to continually attempt those raking cross field passes.
Ole singled him out and also Luke Shaw for not being as fit as the rest of the squad due to lack of collective training sessions (he was isolated due to Covid) but then Ole still starts him ahead of Fred/DVDB.
I make no excuse for the sloppiness in his play but I still can’t understand why he was started in the first place if it was known that he was off the pace.

 

[M Bison]

While I agree with you that yesterday’s performance was woeful, to say that he is incapable of keeping it simple just isn’t correct. When you watch him for France that’s exactly what he does because he is coached to do so; it seems he is asked to continually attempt those raking cross field passes.
Ole singled him out and also Luke Shaw for not being as fit as the rest of the squad due to lack of collective training sessions (he was isolated due to Covid) but then Ole still starts him ahead of Fred/DVDB.
I make no excuse for the sloppiness in his play but I still can’t understand why he was started in the first place if it was known that he was off the pace.

Yes agree with all this, and maybe i should have been more specific in my post, he overcomplicates things when in a Utd shirt.

 

[NK86]

Having seen some of the outrageous comments I had to go watch this game since I missed it and I can say it now while this was not his best game this is easily the worst angle I have seen anyone take to criticize him. Paul has always been two footed from his reserve days to his first game as a professional with us so to use this stick to try to beat him with is plain dumb and indicates you must not know anything about the player you came in here to criticize.

He even made an incisive pass to Shaw with the left foot so imagine still getting criticized for using it, post like that belong in the water off bondi beach.


I agree it is bizarre how he always tries to sidefoot the ball and no longer uses power.


Myths like this need to just recede, no player does that.


It would seem so based on how Paul shoots in recent times but when he first came and at Juventus the only players with a truer shot than him were Balotelli and Zlatan. Not sure why he has changed his technique.


Does not take long for unsteady posts like this. What does having Fernandes have to do with Paul? If today is anything to go by the time Paul leaves Fernandes will already be warming the bench.

If we are planning to play 4231, we need someone to replace Pogba because Bruno is definitely better than him as a #10. If Bruno is to be benched, it will be because we have bought a player of the ilk of David Silva because there aren't a lot of top #10 around at the minute.

I still don't get what is his best position. He dithers far too much on the ball to be a reliable #10 and he is poor defensively to be a good #6/#8. He has a lot of top attributes but strangely has some really critical ones missing to be a top player in any one position.

He needs someone like a Makhelele next to him to make him look good. McTominay and him just don't work because Scott is a terrible DM.

 

[Bondi77]

Do you not watch the matches? Pogba is about as two footed as they come, his passing range with both feet is phenomenal.

Do you?
Paul Scholes has been the only phenomenal passer of a ball I have seen at Utd and it is a word I rarely use and it is one that I would never associate with Pogba.

 

[Morty_]

I didnt watch the match, but i heard he was poor.

Everyone has bad games, but, is it possible he hasn`t fully recovered from covid?

 

[RedAlways78]

If he’s still not 100% recovered from CV then he shouldn’t be on the pitch.

I don’t see enough energy from Pogba. He expects the ball to come to him and doesn’t chase it himself.

 

[K Stand Knut]

Do you not watch the matches? Pogba is about as two footed as they come, his passing range with both feet is phenomenal.

‘phenomenal’

seriously??????????

 

[OrcaFat]

Every player thread, bar DDG (surprisingly) is the same.

Yesterday’s match is not the one to judge him on.

How much training did he have, he was isolating for a couple of weeks due to a positive CV test.

He was poor, but so was everyone else. You can’t take a lot from yesterday when looking at individual players.

Hopefully it’s a massive kick up the arse for him and everyone else. I would urge everyone to reserve judgement.

Fair comments. And yes let’s give him another few chances.

But I can understand him getting some flack even if he has an excuse because he often plays like that (albeit he often has an excuse). So I do think he will start to run out of chances soon because most of the excuses wear a little thin at this point.

 

[K Stand Knut]

If we don’t sell Pogba, we are going to be in a terrible place giving him a new contract and inevitable pay rise because nobody else will and it’ll be the only option other than leaving on a free.

cannot stand him. Terrible player.

we’re better off without him, unfortunately, nobody will want him

 

[JPRouve]

He was also not match fit. Played 30 odd minutes of internationals and his last game before that was in March/April.

His last game for Ajax was in late August, he had a preseason with Ajax.

 

[Maureen-yo]

Do you?
Paul Scholes has been the only phenomenal passer of a ball I have seen at Utd and it is a word I rarely use and it is one that I would never associate with Pogba.

Subjectivity at its finest. David Beckham had a an excellent passing range as did Carrick. Paul Scholes is one of the greatest passers to have ever played the game but that shouldn’t detract from the fact that Pogba has ability.

 

[Maureen-yo]

‘phenomenal’

seriously??????????

Yes. There aren’t many players in English football that are capable of spreading play with either foot like Pogba. KDB, Ruben Nevez are up there too.

 

[Hulksmash]

I don't expect him to perform like De Bruyne, because he doesn't have anything near the Talent of De bruyne but can he atleast more consistent Performance?

 

[harms]

His reputation is much higher than his performances ever are. I have a pattern of discussion with my Liverpool supporting brother where I give the same opinion for Firmino. At least, Firmino has the luxury of having others who are significantly better than him. Pogba will never be the leader or the player who takes the game by the scruff of the neck. He will always be the cherry on top. And that’s just not good enough for what we need right now.

The issue is this word. It’s not true – Pogba’s performances at his best are what rightfully gained him this reputation, and he still provides them from time to time. He seems to be dividing people though – he’s generally better than his critics say that he is (stating that he has never contributed much to us over the course of a season, which is absurd), and he’s worse than his fan boys think that he is, since they tend to remember his best games. The real issue is the lack of consistency.

He was still our most creative player before VDB came on, but the amount of mistakes that he had made yesterday was inexcusable. Even by his standards – and he’s prone to be a bit sloppy even at his best.

 

[Norris]

His last game for Ajax was in late August, he had a preseason with Ajax.

Checked now, it was in late July. But yes, he did have a pre-season with Ajax, although not much game time. He probably could have started the game ahead of Pogba and been subbed out by 60 mins or so yeah.

 

[harms]

‘phenomenal’

seriously??????????

Yeah, he can make pretty much any pass with either side of his either foot. His passing is not as consistent as Scholes’, but if we’re talking specifically about his range of passing, it’s an appropriate word.

 

[Bondi77]

Subjectivity at its finest. David Beckham had a an excellent passing range as did Carrick. Paul Scholes is one of the greatest passers to have ever played the game but that shouldn’t detract from the fact that Pogba has ability.

So we have gone from phenomenal to having ability.
I agree he has ability but not as much as he thinks he has and once he realises that the team will be better for it.

 

[Steve 007]

We all know Pogba has ability but what we seen yesterday was a complete horror show. I can’t count how many times he passed straight to the opposition. His body language was a massive concern too, he might not have been fit, but did he even look like he wanted to be there?
I have read time and again how great a player Pogba is but I’m yet to really see it. We need to keep him but he needs to step up and shut up. The impact Bruno had last season is what I’d expect of Pogba every season. I read the other day we have now got one of the best midfields in Europe. Really?
It wasn’t just Pogba yesterday, Lindelof was really terrible, possibly his worst game and I don’t think we are seeing the same Rashford as before his back injury. Hopefully yesterday is a good kick we need to get us back to post lockdown form.

 

[Coops73]

Shocking today, I lost count of the amount of times he lost the ball but why he started after having Covid not so long ago was baffling so in that respect he gets a pass but he really needs to improve.

 

[JPRouve]

Checked now, it was in late July. But yes, he did have a pre-season with Ajax, although not much game time. He probably could have started the game ahead of Pogba and been subbed out by 60 mins or so yeah.

No, it was in late August against Hertha Berlin.

 

[K Stand Knut]

Yeah, he can make pretty much any pass with either side of his either foot. His passing is not as consistent as Scholes’, but if we’re talking specifically about his range of passing, it’s an appropriate word.

it’s the least appropriate word. I watched him misplace 3/4 passes in the second half alone yesterday.

absolutely terrible. To mention him in the same sentence as KdB is sacrilege. Not even close to his talent

 

[Maureen-yo]

So we have gone from phenomenal to having ability.
I agree he has ability but not as much as he thinks he has and once he realises that the team will be better for it.

No, I still stand by my point. Bruno gave the ball away countless times yesterday too, do you expect him to change his game also?

 

[harms]

it’s the least appropriate word. I watched him misplace 3/4 passes in the second half alone yesterday.

absolutely terrible. To mention him in the same sentence as KdB is sacrilege. Not even close to his talent

He was talking about the passing range from both feet. Passing range and general quality of passing are different things – Pogba’s quality of passing is not to phenomenal, his passing range is. He’s capable of seeing and executing passes only a few other current players are capable of, but he makes way too many mistakes to be considered a truly elite playmaker/passer.

 

[Norris]

No, it was in late August against Hertha Berlin.

You're right. My bad.

 

[Nou_Camp99]

No, I still stand by my point. Bruno gave the ball away countless times yesterday too, do you expect him to change his game also?

You expect the '10' to give the ball away more. He's crowded out and there's no space and he's trying to find difficult passes on edge of the box.

Pogba was giving the ball away under little pressure in the middle of the pitch. There's a huge difference.

He's got bags of ability but his attitude and hunger have always been suspect. KDB is fecking miles better than him. Paul Scholes was on a different league to him too when he was playing.

You need more than natural talent to be a world class player. He's a fraud.

 

[K Stand Knut]

He was talking about the passing range from both feet. Passing range and general quality of passing are different things – Pogba’s quality of passing is not to phenomenal, his passing range is. He’s capable of seeing and executing passes only a few other current players are capable of, but he makes way too many mistakes to be considered a truly elite playmaker/passer.

phenomenal. Quite!

so he can see a pass that nobody else can but can’t complete the pass.

what an utterly pointless strength.

neither his range, nor his passing quality are phenomenal. We could argue all day that his range is or isn’t but without the ability to execute this phenomenal passing range, it’s absolutely pointless

get rid

 

[JPRouve]

You're right. My bad.

No problem. While VDB should be a lot fitter than Pogba, maybe he picked up a niggle during the week or maybe Pogba was actually as fit but rusty. Pogba has form for that, he seems to be always fit to start but still requiring a game or two to get into rhythm and gain some match sharpness, it's his stamina that can be an issue.

 

[Maureen-yo]

phenomenal. Quite!

so he can see a pass that nobody else can but can’t complete the pass.

what an utterly pointless strength.

neither his range, nor his passing quality are phenomenal. We could argue all day that his range is or isn’t but without the ability to execute this phenomenal passing range, it’s absolutely pointless

get rid

Yawn. He has the ability and has exemplified it many times for United, France and Juve.

It’s a pointless conversation to have when you put “get rid” at the end of your comment clearly showing you’re not a fan and therefore can’t be objective when it comes to evaluating a player’s strengths and weaknesses.