“I don’t think he lives up to the expectations”
Former Manchester United coach Rene Meulensteen believes Paul Pogba needs to work harder if he is to be considered one of the best players in the world.
Despite his undoubted quality, Pogba has struggled for consistency since returning to Old Trafford from Juventus four years ago, with many questioning whether he has come close to living up to the then-world record fee United paid for him. His display in Sunday’s defeat to Arsenal, where he conceded the penalty from which Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored the game’s only goal, has drawn more criticism.
Meulensteen was part of Sir Alex Ferguson’s coaching staff at United as Pogba was progressing through their academy system. Speaking to Stadium Astro, the Dutchman was asked if he felt the World Cup winner was hard-working enough to be considered a world-class performer.
“I’ve worked with Sir Alex Ferguson and one of his biggest phrases to all the players was that you can have all the talent in the world but it’s working hard that brings that quality to the surface.
“And for me, no, he hasn’t worked hard enough. I see it all the time. It’s too slow, it’s too laboured, there’s no urgency about it. And other teams can capitalise on that.”
Meulensteen continued: “He is a very talented player. Everyone keeps talking about him – ‘he’s world class’. I would never use that ‘world class’ so easy because I have known players past and present who deserve [to be called] world class. In my opinion, Paul doesn’t deserve that in any shape or form because I don’t think he lives up to the expectations.
“I don’t think we expect too much of him because of the player he has been and the trophies he has won.
“We need to expect even more from him, but that only comes from working hard. That then rubs off on other players. Not working hard does as well because they start to question those performances.”
After defeat to Arsenal, United turn their focus back to the Champions League where they face İstanbul Başakşehir away on Wednesday night. It is unclear whether Pogba will keep his place in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s starting XI for the game.
