We never deemed him not good enough for United. We offered him another contract. He chose to leave.
Paul Pogba
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ok We shouldnt go for him and City or Chelsea get him. Considering both their midfields are light years ahead of ours where does that leave us? Suarez we also shouldnt go for I suppose he ends up at Arsenal. Morally we are in a perfect place. Football wise quite rightly we'll be 4th best if that in this country. I mean we let Fabregas go to Chelsea and bought Herrera instead. We might as well go for a lesser player to Pogba and Suarez as well.
We should have inserted a buyback clause, a la Fibreglass.
Mind you, as free agent, I suppose that wasn't possible?
Mind you, as free agent, I suppose that wasn't possible?
Not possible indeed, his contract was up.
It is also worth considering what kind of attitude Pogba would bring if he came back - it's not hard to imagine a smug, returning hero, who would expect things to be run his way (and would have his agent go to the press every time they weren't.) And there would always be the lingering threat of a move to a more desirable club like Real (of course this is the case with any top player, but Pogba and Raiola have already established quite a track-record of doing this, and he's what, 21 years old?)
It's my firm belief that one of the major reasons for United's success under Fergie (and failure under Moyes,) was players' willingness to sacrifice their egos for the team (why Fergie was so astute in moving along the likes of Beckham and perhaps even Keane.) Perhaps Ronaldo was an exception to this, yet you always sensed that he was popular among his teammates.
For the kind of money a Pogba transfer would demand, I wonder if we wouldn't be better off spending it elsewhere.
As far as I can recall it's because of Götze's behavior before he joined Bayern. He extended his contract and was all over the media how much he loved playing for Dortmund and even after the rumors were coming up that there was a buyout clause and Bayern wanted to buy him he still said there was nothing to it and that he was happy playing for Dortmund and shortly after that the bomb exploded and someone leaked the information that the deal was done and Götze would join Bayern in the next transfer window. They basically were angry with him acting like he wanted to stay at Dortmund forever and then lying about his done deal with Bayern on top of it.
Lewandowski and Kagawa though were pretty open from the start that they only saw Dortmund as temporary step in their development and they didn't come through the youth system either, I think that's the reason they never turned on these players as much as they did on Götze. But take it with a pinch of salt since I'm neither a Dortmund fan and nor really close to any Dortmund fans, so this story might be wrong but it's what I gathered from some German football forums and press artciles.
You are correct! He was 29 when they signed him.
If United thought the player was good enough at the time they would have offered him the playing time and contract suited to his ability. He decided to leave because he wasn't getting game time, nor was he promised it. Why? Because he wasn't deemed good enough. Yes, it was a mistake by the club but it still highlight the club didn't want him enough.
What's to say Fabregas would have come, even if we offered the money? We don't know, but maybe he wanted to play in London. And if you want Suarez at OT....
City and Chelsea, like you point out, have better midfielder than ours. Blowing a world record fee (because that's what it will take to get PP) after letting him go for nothing is not going to solve the issue, we need 2 great players in midfield and with 80m, we may be able to do that.
You want him, great. For the money it will cost, I dont. OK?
Paying 75-80 million for him would be absolute madness. I don't really care about the Glazers' bank account, but I doubt they'd be daft enough to pay that.
Amen.
We should switch our focus to Barkley, Vidal or Gundogan in the summer if the latter two can prove their fitness. Pogba aint coming back here any time soon. Roberto Martinez might be interested in a Herrera plus cash Barkley swap deal in the summer but it will be very very tough to prize Barkley from Evertons clutches this coming summer. They may plan to keep him for another couple of seasons
Just because they don't play a player when he's 18 for most of the season doesn't mean they don't rate the kid or think he's not good enough for United. That's like saying United didn't rate Welbeck as being good enough for United because he didn't play much when he was 18. There is a difference between thinking someone isn't ready and thinking someone isn't good enough for United. This is basically just semantics at this point. We can both call it whatever.
BTW, Fergie did tell him that he would get playing time, but Pogba wanted min. game time on the contract. Fergie would never give him that. It was the wrong decision, but that's what made Fergie, Fergie. Fergie didn't want to pay agents big fees either, and if I remember correctly, put a big dent on the Hazard deal. Another wrong decision, but that was Fergie's way of saying he had full control.
Fergie made a mistake by not giving him enough playing time in 2011/12 to convince him to stay. He offered Pogba a contract (good enough for United), and Pogba left for good reason. He obviously proved he was ready the very next season competing against better midfielders than Cleverley, Anderson, etc...
Barkely hasn't proved himself in CM, and I don't think he's really all that good either. Would cost a significant amount too.
Apparently we had some sort of agreement with them that we wouldnt go after each others young players"AC Milan wanted to sign him, together with Genoa, and then send him there on loan. Inter said they did not want to create a row with (former Manchester United boss) Sir Alex Ferguson.
Yeah I rate Barkley and would love City to sign him but it's weird seeing his name alongside Vidal and Gundogan as potential signings.
I reckon that's partly true - but only partly. There was never any doubt about Pogba's immense potential - and I'm sure Fergie never doubted the latter either.
But part of the Pogba story is that he wasn't actually doing all that well for the reserves in his final season. He didn't apply himself properly, so the story goes, was getting a bit too cocky - serving up moments of brilliance but wasn't arsed to give it 100% for the full ninety (which he had done to a much greater extent in previous seasons).
He had a dip, in short, and Fergie wasn't going to positively reward him for getting too big for his boots, was he? Pogba was too impatient and too cocky and Fergie was never one for allowing any sort of big headed antics (rightly so).
Add this to the still unclear nature of what Pogba's agent had going with Juventus (well before the actual move took place) - and the picture is somewhat different to the "United were utter idiots for letting Pogba go" version many seem to subscribe to.
I'd say that would be the final fee if we included his agents fees in (for who I understand likes to have his bank account filled too). But if it's just that to Juve and wages/agent fees on top after then feck that
i never knew that he was fecking off in training and in the reserves. juve unlocked the door and got the best (so far) out of him. maybe that cocky nature is exactly what this club needs and had needed - kid named ronaldo came through here and i hear is ok , kind of big headed.
I think Ronaldo knew his place a lot better than Pogba.
We should do everything to sign Pogba in my opinion, he's the best 21 and under player in the world, so if Manchester United want to be the best we have to sign the best.
But then again i live in the real world and in the real world if I (or anyone here) quit and walked out on a job tomorrow, they wouldn't have us back and not only did Pogba quit his job, he would cost his former employers £70m for him to come back.
It's not a Fabregas situation re-signing for Barcelona, I don't think it's going to happen.
But then again i live in the real world and in the real world if I (or anyone here) quit and walked out on a job tomorrow, they wouldn't have us back and not only did Pogba quit his job, he would cost his former employers £70m for him to come back.
It's not a Fabregas situation re-signing for Barcelona, I don't think it's going to happen.
yep he did and does but doesn't change fergie let a star go. don't think fergie could deal with him and juve have.
he didn't quit , got a better job , playing 1st team football and he did learn new skill sets so he is a better worker.
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These 'we must break the bank for Barkley' posts seem to come from a different universe. A universe where Barkley is living up to the early hype.
They dealt with him by simply giving him what he demanded. SAF was right not to give in here, as you set a precedent for other talent to come through.
Go all out for him.
I've no idea what he was doing in training, but he didn't play well enough for the reserves - which is crucial. He regressed in terms of his overall contribution compared to his penultimate season at the club. And it obviously wasn't about ability but about attitude. The latter was always extremely important to Fergie.
Ronaldo was clearly very different in that regard. He may have been cocky in one sense, but not being arsed was never a problem with him.
no brainer.
Not exactly they dealt with him by sending Buffon and Pirlo to tell that he had to behave and work harder, after that apparently Conte told him that if he didn't acted better they would either send him on loan or sell him.
What's the difference?
I'd be worried he'd cry off to Madrid after 2 seasons. His agent would probably push him in that direction.
in a footballing sense it means he quit united reserves to play for juve's first team and he's improved year on year. now,in business setting , he quit his internship at proctor & gamble to head up the marketing dept at J&J like anyone would. to get him back to the club will be expensive.
i wonder if fergie had a word or two and certainly the characters at united would sort that out , be it players or other backroom staff.
I still operate under the assumption that our cash reserves are not unlimited. If I'm wrong about that, then by all means go galactico and pick up Pogba and Hummels (Bale too...why not?), although I'm starting to lean toward LaPorte instead of Hummels. I might even just do Coleman (well, I wouldn't "do" Coleman, just buy him) as I'm just about down with Rafael's injuries -- although a cheekbone fracture is outside the fault of any footballer.
For me, I really do see progress with Smalling and Rojo. Sometimes it's two steps forward, one back with them but I really do believe our patience will be rewarded. But then again if a world class, World Cup-hardened central defender is there for the taking then I can't argue against taking him.
It seems to me we need to let go of the "why did Pogba leave" debate. It's ancient history and clouds clear thinking as to what do about Pogba today. If Ferguson were still manager that history wouldn't be ancient and all those demons would be worth talking about over and over, but we're two managers removed from Ferguson and Pogba has become a truly top shelf midfielder.
I wonder if this is why we didn't go for Coutinho.
He is already pushing hm now into that direction. Talking about world record fee and Pogba leaving at the end of the season and now think about which club is famous for frequently breaking their own record transfer fee. Madrid is the logical next destination for Pogba.
I know nothing about LaPorte? What makes you lean towards him? I'd love to hear about his qualities.
A straight up question about Pogba (as I'll freely admit to not having seen much of him for Juventus/France.) His agent, Raiola, claims that after Messi, Ronaldo and Ibrahimovic, Pogba is the most valuable player around. Now of course he's bound to say that, but my question is: how good is he? Is he in fact the best midfielder in the world right now? Or is it more that he has the potential to be?
If it's the latter, then I can't help but be wary, as his attitude (based solely on what I've read, so please feel free to set me straight) gives the impression that he feels like he's made it already, and that he is always on the lookout for his next career move (not a bad thing in and of itself, but perhaps a reason for trepidation given our uncertain status these days.)
So how does he stack up to the likes of Gundogan, Thiago, Fabregas, Koke, Veratti, Vidal, Strootman and anybody I may have forgotten?
If it's the latter, then I can't help but be wary, as his attitude (based solely on what I've read, so please feel free to set me straight) gives the impression that he feels like he's made it already, and that he is always on the lookout for his next career move (not a bad thing in and of itself, but perhaps a reason for trepidation given our uncertain status these days.)
So how does he stack up to the likes of Gundogan, Thiago, Fabregas, Koke, Veratti, Vidal, Strootman and anybody I may have forgotten?
Apparently he is the best player in the world after Ronaldo Messi and Ibrahimovic
"If you cannot take Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi or Zlatan Ibrahimovic, you can only go for Paul.”
“If someone wants him, the market situation could see him go for more than 100 million euros (£75 million).”
"If you cannot take Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi or Zlatan Ibrahimovic, you can only go for Paul.”
“If someone wants him, the market situation could see him go for more than 100 million euros (£75 million).”
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The attitude thing, well, it's a good attitude to be confident in your ability. Football is not a personality contest, therefore, having absolute self belief, bothering on arrogance can be a good thing [Cantona, Ronaldo] as long as you back it up with performance. He's not Balotelli or that kind. If everyone of those players is at their best, I'll only put Fab, Vidal and Koke ahead of him.
Well, I don't think Cantona and Ronaldo had work ethic problems in training. Wasn't it the opposite, both of them working very hard in training?
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