Having a pop at Paul Pogba is all the rage at the minute, but it wasn’t always this way…
Only a few months ago, the midfielder was drawing comparisons with the likes of Patrick Vieira and Zinedine Zidane and was widely expected to be the driving force in France’s push for Euro 2016 glory.
Although the French came mightily close to becoming continental champions in summer, there was a sense throughout the Euros that Pogba, for all his dabs and fancy hairdos, didn’t quite live up to the hype throughout the tournament. He wasn’t terrible, but playing a deeper role to the one he had flourished in for Juventus, the 23-year-old didn’t quite set the tournament alight.
Still, that wasn’t enough to stop Jose Mourinho splashing out nearly £100m to bring him back to Manchester United a few weeks later.
The world record fee coupled with the fact United aren’t everyone’s cup of tea has seen plenty more football fans question whether Pogba was worth the money or the reputation.
Big Pogba news. My Nan, 89, says he's not worth the money. pic.twitter.com/gdjWzfPl8z
— Si Lloyd (@SmnLlyd5) August 7, 2016
Yet to hit top form in United colours, it seems Pogba hasn’t fared much better on his return to action with his national team.
Having played his part in France’s 4-1 victory over Bulgaria in Paris on Friday night, Pogba’s manager Didier Deschamps has also indicated that he needs to pull his socks up.
“He can and must do better,” Deschamps said after the match, in which Pogba once again occupied a deep-lying, more defensive midfield position.
“When he has a defensive role like that, that’s not the best for him. This is more a construction part, protection as compared to the central hinge. He has everything to do it. He did some good things, some others less good.”
Fortunately for Jose Mourinho, he can always replace Pogba with the likes of Wayne Rooney or Bastian Schweinsteiger should his form not improve in a United shirt.
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