I don't think he'll come back, but players have returned to clubs before after not making it the first time round. The problem we have is, there is no way that Pogba should have had to go and find first team football elsewhere, as he was clearly ready. He knew that and most probably the majority of the United faithful knew that. I think for that reason he wouldn't come back.
Paul Pogba
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I don't think he'll come back, but players have returned to clubs before after not making it the first time round. The problem we have is, there is no way that Pogba should have had to go and find first team football elsewhere, as he was clearly ready. He knew that and most probably the majority of the United faithful knew that. I think for that reason he wouldn't come back.
You'll seldom find a player more suited to a particular gap in a squad. Would likely settle quicker than most given his time spent here in the past and could be the core of the side for a decade. If we genuinely have funds and if Juve look like they could sell then we'd be mad not to take a punt at 40m.
It's not happening, it's a silly rumour.
However, with my muppet hat on, it would be kind of smart to bring him back. First, getting a top class player but also, Moyes stamping his own mark on the team. Fergie didn't want him but Moyes can go out and say, well no, I want him. Also, the other side, Pogba going back to play under someone other than Fergie.
Now that's all fun and games and anyone giving this any serious consideration really needs to have their head checked. It would be great though lol.
However, with my muppet hat on, it would be kind of smart to bring him back. First, getting a top class player but also, Moyes stamping his own mark on the team. Fergie didn't want him but Moyes can go out and say, well no, I want him. Also, the other side, Pogba going back to play under someone other than Fergie.
Now that's all fun and games and anyone giving this any serious consideration really needs to have their head checked. It would be great though lol.
Pogba scores great goals and clearly has an eye for a pass, but why on earth are people rating him as one of the best midfielders in the world or anywhere near the £50m bracket of midfielder off the back of what he's done in his career to date?
He seems to be one of the most overrated footballers on the planet these days. Even if he came back to United, which he won't, I very much doubt he will look great in a side like ours where he doesn't have a Vidal next to him doing all the running and also where he has to show some defensive awareness and positioning in a side that doesn't cater to his game like Juve do.
If someone can highlight some of his stellar games in a Juve shirt or for France, then please do... and I'm not talking about scoring fantastic goals because that is a given, but rather all-round games where he has shown the command of the field and the presence of a Xavi, Iniesta, Schwiensteiger or any other midfielder in that accepted elite bracketing.
I'll readily admit I don't watch Juventus much, only in Europe and the biggest Serie A games so I'd welcome being proven wrong, but as far as I can see, Pogba scores goals that will look amazing on a showreel, passes well but nothing out of this world and still has huge portions of his overall game to sort out - he doesn't work hard enough off the ball, is poor positionally and defensively and he has massive lulls of nothingness during the 90.
Thinking about it as I type, to me, he could be slightly compared to Yaya for the fact that he does his impactful work in bursts of activity, but unlike Yaya, who has proven pedigree, he doesn't come with the guarantee of being a rounded midfielder at this present time.
If we've got £50m to spend on a single player then surely you look at the Gundogan's and Vidal's of the game who have proven more than Pogba to this point in time and come with less baggage by way of a bent agent.
He seems to be one of the most overrated footballers on the planet these days. Even if he came back to United, which he won't, I very much doubt he will look great in a side like ours where he doesn't have a Vidal next to him doing all the running and also where he has to show some defensive awareness and positioning in a side that doesn't cater to his game like Juve do.
If someone can highlight some of his stellar games in a Juve shirt or for France, then please do... and I'm not talking about scoring fantastic goals because that is a given, but rather all-round games where he has shown the command of the field and the presence of a Xavi, Iniesta, Schwiensteiger or any other midfielder in that accepted elite bracketing.
I'll readily admit I don't watch Juventus much, only in Europe and the biggest Serie A games so I'd welcome being proven wrong, but as far as I can see, Pogba scores goals that will look amazing on a showreel, passes well but nothing out of this world and still has huge portions of his overall game to sort out - he doesn't work hard enough off the ball, is poor positionally and defensively and he has massive lulls of nothingness during the 90.
Thinking about it as I type, to me, he could be slightly compared to Yaya for the fact that he does his impactful work in bursts of activity, but unlike Yaya, who has proven pedigree, he doesn't come with the guarantee of being a rounded midfielder at this present time.
If we've got £50m to spend on a single player then surely you look at the Gundogan's and Vidal's of the game who have proven more than Pogba to this point in time and come with less baggage by way of a bent agent.
Interesting to see Zidane say he could have replaced Scholes. I have been saying since his u18 days that the most suitable replacement for Scholes, which we've been searching for high and wide for years, was Pogba.
You just have to laugh about it really.
You just have to laugh about it really.
Wouldn't we be better spending £50M on someone more established? We weren't prepared to go beyond £25M for Fabregas, someone who is well established and knows the PL well, yet we are prepared to spend this amount on Pogba? Doesn't make sense.
See, this is why I made the comment I did. You're as bad as pocco to be honest, can't take your opinion seriously on matters like this when you're saying stupid stuff like this, no offence.
What's this in relation to?
Youd know he was up there with the best midfielders in the world, even if he played in Italy, when Madrid decided to make him the object of their affections and put in a €100m bid for him.
We don't know that we are willing to pay that much for Pogba.
We had (and still have!) a big gaping hole in our midfield, and we had probably the world's most talented central midfielder in our youth rank, yet we couldn't give him minutes.
A stain on Fergie's tenure.
A stain on Fergie's tenure.
Verona, Torino, Livorno, Napoli etc etc, the list goes on.
He's not one of the best midfielders in the world yet, but putting him near a 50 million bracket isn't that crazy when taking everything into account. Juventus don't HAVE to sell or have any real need to do so. Pogba has put in countless fantastic performances to a point where he's now a regular in one of the best midfields in Europe. And let's highlight the key in all of this, he's doing it all at 20, yes TWENTY, years old.
You'd expect that at that age he'd have areas to still improve on. Of course he can improve on positional awareness, the tactical side etc. That'll come though as he ages. To have the talent that he has and be doing what he's currently doing at an age of 20 is pretty damn incredible to be perfectly honest. That's the reason why it'll take massive money to get him. For the record, I'm not saying we'll sign him, it's quite obvious to me that we're likely not even looking at him. But today's market is crazy, just see that people the fees for people like Falcao, Bale etc etc. Pogba falls into a bracket of putting in countless great performances, looking completely at home alongside the top midfielders and being unbelievably young. 50 million could potentially get you a guy who's already verging on great that's quite likely to become world class with 10-15 years still ahead of him.
I don't expect to see him leaving Juve yet and honestly, I don't think it'll be 50 million (I reckon 35-40 at most unless Juve push one of the crazy rich clubs to the limit), but it's quite easy to understand why those prices are being thrown around and why he's getting the praise he is.
You saying Serie A is nothing but slow and is a shit league. Oh and bringing up how you've got an Italian parent, as if that makes your opinion more valid. But that's a discussion for another thread, no need to ruin this one.
I thought Mr Mujac's post that Docotron reposted (#8993) was very interesting in terms of whether this is a stain on SAF's tenure or not, and how it could have been handled differently. Clearly Mujac is far better informed than I am, or most of us are to be fair. But SAF made exceptions when appropriate and if Pogba does go on to be the kind of quality people are talking about here people will look back and say perhaps this should have been one of those occasions when he made an exception and treated him a little differently. But that's quite a big ask. And it may be SAF didnt even decide against that course of action based on ability but on temperament, if he thought Pogba would always have his eye on a move (if it is true he is already thinking about leaving Juve) and it wasnt worth investing in him now only to lose him before he peaks. That's just one example. Id probably give SAF the benefit of the doubt but its a big if, whether he does achieve that status. He is young and there is no knowing that he will live up to all this hype.
Thanks for the reply.
I can't comment on those games you mentioned, so I'll ask what he did that would earmark them as great performances? Remember, I'm not asking about a spectacular goal or one great pass because he's been doing that since he was a kid, rather, I'm asking whether he controlled those games or was the conduit which play went through etc, which is what the best midfielders have in their locker on a game by game basis.
There's no denying that he is young and well above the curve for his age, especially so given most mdfielders don't round into the finished product until their mid 20's, but we don't need a potential superstar at this moment in time, we need the finished article right now. You supplement established talent with great potential like Pogba, I feel. He'd have been an absolutely perfect up and comer for our 2008 squad vintage for example where he could work out the kinks in his game at a steady pace in a cohesive, successful and most importantly, winning team. We don't have any of those luxuries now and we need a player who can come in and galvanise us straight away, which I don't see Pogba being able to do.
I find him young and immature when I've seen him. He has every right to be that at his age and it is part of growing up, but in our predicament, do we have time for such growing pains? I don't think we do, not until after we've got a world class midfield again.
As for Juve, he's a perfect fit there and Vidal is a godsend to help nuture his talent and cover for all the holes in his game. Pogba is very fortunate to have such a player in midfield to effectively carry him and he wouldn't get that here.
I'll agree that there's a potential world class player there but think we'd be bonkers to entertain the idea of purchasing him effectively for the future when our problems are in the here and now. If he were a rounded player, then from the footballing POV, I'd be all for it, but currently, he's best suited to being an AM or a CM with very little defensive duty or responsibility.
When Bale goes for 100 mil, it's not so crazy to have Pogba in the 50s. He hasn't proven himself as he's only had one season at the top level, but it's not as if he's had seasons before that where he was sub-par. He is a teenager who went to Juventus, the best side in Italy with the best midfield in the world (arguably), and made himself the star of the show (bar Vidal) during his debut first team season in a position that normally doesn't have anyone starting in it regularly before the age of 24 or 25. Not to say there are no question marks over whether he can adapt to wherever he goes, or whether he can continue such form, but to say the hype is totally unjustified is wrong, I feel. He's clearly a huge talent, and he is giving the performances to show it.
By the way, I am not saying we should spend 50 mil on him. I'm just saying I can understand if some people think it isn't a total waste, that is all.
By the way, I am not saying we should spend 50 mil on him. I'm just saying I can understand if some people think it isn't a total waste, that is all.
The danger is taking something that is crazy and then using that as a benchmark to measure sanity elsewhere.
People get sucked in by Pogba's flaws but the kid was quality. His personality no one is sure of but if we'd have signed Ronaldinho I'm sure many would have moaned about his lack of defending. Pogba has a similar attribute and can produce real quality. If he's committed, he'll be one of the best midfielders of his generation.
I mentioned my Italian parent because idiots were saying how British it was to say these things about Serie A. Do keep up.
I can't remember what my exact words were regarding Serie A, but in comparison with other leagues it is slow. By it's previous standards, it is poor.
Alessandro Nesta agrees: "There's no money in Italy at the moment and the best players go to play in other leagues - Spain, England, Germany. Italy's going down". That's just part of what he said and his opinion is just one of many that I could post to back up my opinion.
True, I was thinking that as I typed it, in fact.
It will be the norm soon enough though, sadly.
He controlled a lot of those games. Great on the ball in them, retained possession greatly and also pressured and won the ball back at a high level.
I wouldn't argue with much of the rest. Just so you know, I'm not actually agreeing we should spend massive on him or saying he's the right guy that we need right now, I'm talking about him in general as a player, not specifically for our side. I think you're spot on regarding Vidal being alongside and him also being in a midfield three. If by some absolute madness we ever did resign him, we'd surely have to be putting him out there in a midfield three, which clearly get's the best out of him. It's tough right now to judge him outside of a system like that or consider how well he'd do right in in a two man midfield like we seem to play, time will probably tell (I haven't seen a great deal of France lately so I'm not sure what system they play with).
He probably choose about the best move possible in terms of what club to join when he left us. Moves to a side that have faith in him and also play him alongside two other midfielders. It benefits him that those other two are a world class experienced Pirlo and an incredible Vidal. I'm confident that's helped massively in him progressing as quickly as he has done. In fairness to him he did a pretty damn good job for Juve with Pirlo recently missing, he's developing his game pretty damn well to a point where he's a top rounded player able to do pretty much anything. He's still got work to do and areas to improve, but based on what we've seen with his progress so far, he'll continue to grow and grow.
As for Pocco
"Pogba is one of those players who leaves you speechless. After
only three or four training sessions we were impressed by his
enormous qualities. We looked at each other as if to say 'Are they
blind in Manchester?'" - Gianluigi Buffon.
only three or four training sessions we were impressed by his
enormous qualities. We looked at each other as if to say 'Are they
blind in Manchester?'" - Gianluigi Buffon.
Those quotes (if true) are sad but funny.
That's... I was going to say good to hear, but as he's not our player anymore, I'm not sure how I feel about him tidying up his game! In the interest of him becoming the best he can be, then it is still good to hear, I guess.
We don't see things any differently it seems. I just found it odd that he was being declared the answer to our problems at such a lofty price whilst he's got a lot to work on and would be only one piece of the puzzle that is our shambles of a midfield.I wouldn't argue with much of the rest. Just so you know, I'm not actually agreeing we should spend massive on him or saying he's the right guy that we need right now, I'm talking about him in general as a player, not specifically for our side. I think you're spot on regarding Vidal being alongside and him also being in a midfield three. If by some absolute madness we ever did resign him, we'd surely have to be putting him out there in a midfield three, which clearly get's the best out of him. It's tough right now to judge him outside of a system like that or consider how well he'd do right in in a two man midfield like we seem to play, time will probably tell (I haven't seen a great deal of France lately so I'm not sure what system they play with).
He probably choose about the best move possible in terms of what club to join when he left us. Moves to a side that have faith in him and also play him alongside two other midfielders. It benefits him that those other two are a world class experienced Pirlo and an incredible Vidal. I'm confident that's helped massively in him progressing as quickly as he has done. In fairness to him he did a pretty damn good job for Juve with Pirlo recently missing, he's developing his game pretty damn well to a point where he's a top rounded player able to do pretty much anything. He's still got work to do and areas to improve, but based on what we've seen with his progress so far, he'll continue to grow and grow.
As for Pocco
With that said, I wouldn't be averse to Moyes taking advantage of how poor our wingers are and dropping the 4 man midfield altogether in favour of a 3-man system or a 4-2-3-1. I was thinking more along the lines of if we persist with the 2-man midfield, Pogba would not be the answer at his current level and lackadaisical approach to 2-way play.
7th goal of the season with another scorcher of a goal today. He really does that effortlessly.
Also gave a beautiful assist for Vidal's goal.
Goal :
Assist :
Also gave a beautiful assist for Vidal's goal.
Goal :
Assist :
Must have one of the best long shots in the world. The amount of goals he scores outside of the box is just unreal. Can't think of many who rival him in terms of power combined with accuracy.
His striking technique reminds me of Steve the gayer.
Vidal's touch for that goal is a beauty.Pogba's long shot was great too.
Pogba was doing those shots with closed eyes in our reserves.
I'm sorry, but why the feck did Fergie not play him?
I will never, ever understand that. He was clearly ready.
I will never, ever understand that. He was clearly ready.
Zzzzzzz.
If there's any truth in the Gundogan possibly coming in the summer whispers (probably not true) then at least finally we'd have a monster player that would help us put the Pogba demons to rest.........I think Pogba had signed a deal with Juve behind our backs before Fergie even had a chance to offer him a new deal....I'm sure Fergie regrets letting him go and not giving him game time easrlier but such is the nature of the football world...you win some...you lose some and there's no doubt he would have got the game time had he stayed on a little longer with us
I don't really think, regardless of whether he had been played more, that Pogba ever had any intention of staying with United that long. No proof of that of course....just a hunch...
this thread depresses me.....
how chumps like Anderson survived under Fergie and that quote from Pogba about how Fergie preferred Park and Fabio in midfield for the Blackburn game - we fecked up badly and until we sort out midfield Pogba is definately one who got away
I can only think Fergie was trying to hide Pogba's talent - that FA winning Youth team with the Keanes, Pogba, Morrison, Tunnicliffe, Januzaj a little later was arguably our best since the 90s
how chumps like Anderson survived under Fergie and that quote from Pogba about how Fergie preferred Park and Fabio in midfield for the Blackburn game - we fecked up badly and until we sort out midfield Pogba is definately one who got away
I can only think Fergie was trying to hide Pogba's talent - that FA winning Youth team with the Keanes, Pogba, Morrison, Tunnicliffe, Januzaj a little later was arguably our best since the 90s
I'm not sure Fergie appreciated the cocky nature of Pogba. Sure Rooney and Ronaldo were very confident in themselves but Pogba exudes some sort of arrogance beyond what some may tolerate IMO... and Fergie probably felt he needed to pull rank and show whose boss. I refuse to belief, on pure footballing talent, that he could let Pogba go.
I would have to agree with this....you just get the feeling that maybe Fergie felt Pogba was more interested in the money than actually being a loyal servant to the club and didn't like his attitude.....and it might not have been in the dressing rooms best influence to have a player constantly flirting with Real and PSG while constantly demanding a pay rise too......even with all his God given talent...maybe Fergie felt he was doing what was best for the club in the long term...already the Juve players know its only a matter of time before he leaves so they will have a huge gap to fill when he leaves and they only will have had him for a couple of season....Pogba would have quit us for PSG after 2 seasons anyways as they would have offered him a salary that we couldn't offer him
Yeah true.
I don't get the argument that 'his not loyal he will have left Utd in 2 seasons time anyway, doesn't matter'. But it's different isn't it - I mean we would at least picked up a good 20-30mil fee for him had he left a season or two later.
Why do people keep blaming saf for letting him go? He was offered a contract but decided to go to italy because he is more concerned with making as much money as quickly as possible for him and his agent rather than takng a long view. How is that utds or safs fault? feck him, he can go to real when they bid along with the other mercenaries.
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