Is Pogba as good as gone?

Glorio

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Honeymoon period, that is correct and after the break he was actually less effective as teams started to close him down much sooner. Watch next season when teams are at full flow and Rashford starts taking the penalties again all of these hyped up stats will subside and team as a whole will perform much better.
The whole team including Pogba became less effective as the matches piled on. If you can't appreciate the effect fatigue had on the whole team, then enjoy.

Fancy talking about lazy tag when you have just come in to this thread with an untrue media narrative; the only game changing difference Fernandes made post lockdown was to score penalties that he did not win himself or to make a simple pass to a player right in front of him after someone has made the more incisive pass between the lines to him. Cannot wait for this overhyping to dissipate.
What untrue media narrative? Was Pogba (or his agent) pushing to leave before we bought Bruno? Yes

Has he been more willing to stay since Bruno's come in, and the team has picked up? Yes

Is the team better since Bruno joined? Yes

He hasn't missed one penalty yet, so why are you so keen for him to stop taking them?

And disregarding all Bruno's assists and goals as simple passes and penalties (he didn't win himself)? :lol:
It's just so factually false that you've exposed yourself as extremely biased in your desperation to hype one player and undersell the other. Go and check again (assists, who won penalties, etc) and you'll see you've lied more than once.
I actually rate Pogba a lot, but I can acknowledge that there's another very special creative player who has joined and lifted the team so much so that the team is a more attractive prospect.

If Paul stays which is not a given has nothing to do with Fernandes and more to do with the way the team has improved with different signings coming in. He still our difference maker but now he has a bit more help.
So Paul's agent is pushing for an exit up till January and the team has been in dire straights, you correctly point out that the team improved. Which "signings" did we make in January then? And even if you refer to the cumulative effect of the collection of all signings made for the season, Bruno counts right? The fact you can't escape is that his purchase was the one that visibly elevated us from a performance and results perspective.

You say he's still our difference maker, but now he has help? Yes! He has help as there's another creative difference maker in the team. Why does it have to be one or the other with some folks?
 

Rozay

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Well Ole seems to be planning next season with him at his disposal and possibly playing a bit more advanced likely as an 8 than what we saw post-lockdown

I think we’d certainly need a new midfielder in place of Matic for this. That said, I’m keen to see Pogba play 10/15 yards further forward. I’m not really enjoying this sitting in front of the defence thing. That said, I think it would need both a nee defensive midfielder, and also Bruno to meet him half way and drop 10/15 yards further back. Currently, Bruno plays around the strikers. Personally, I think the entire midfield trio is shit and won’t take us anywhere. I mean, individually they are top players, but they don’t compliment each other and the unit is shit.
 

JPRouve

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I think we’d certainly need a new midfielder in place of Matic for this. That said, I’m keen to see Pogba play 10/15 yards further forward. I’m not really enjoying this sitting in front of the defence thing. That said, I think it would need both a nee defensive midfielder, and also Bruno to meet him half way and drop 10/15 yards further back. Currently, Bruno plays around the strikers. Personally, I think the entire midfield trio is shit and won’t take us anywhere. I mean, individually they are top players, but they don’t compliment each other and the unit is shit.
I don't think that you should hold back like that.:lol:

Now I agree, I'm pretty sure that Bruno was operating deeper before the break and in my opinion he was a lot better in that hybrid 10/8 role, it would make sense to see Pogba and Bruno have similar roles with a DM behind them in a clear 433.
 

Rozay

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I don't think that you should hold back like that.:lol:

Now I agree, I'm pretty sure that Bruno was operating deeper before the break and in my opinion he was a lot better in that hybrid 10/8 role, it would make sense to see Pogba and Bruno have similar roles with a DM behind them in a clear 433.
Haha, just saying it as I see it JP. The midfield is rubbish!

The shape is terrible, we are basically playing 2 in midfield and not 3 - and regularly end up 2 vs 3 in midfield - and then the two that we do have cannot press the ball and will be passed around easily if we came up against a City or good continental side. There’s also 15/20 yards between each player - Matic is hanging around the centre backs, Pogba is in the centre circle, Bruno is with the strikers. No scope for any interplay or triangles etc from our midfield 3.

As I said, I think the 3 are all top players, but they are not a unit at all, they are all just doing their own thing, and they will be exposed against an Arsenal, let alone City.
 

El Jefe

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We will be a far better team once he leaves. This is like the Coutinho with Liverpool situation except he hasn't hit the heights of the Brazilian.

He's been here for four seasons now and we're at the stage where what we've seen is what we get with Pogba. I've never seen a top player that needed so many excuses for why he hasn't been able to perform at a top level consistently. His issue is that he's just not dependable, central midfielders are usually your most reliable players. Keane and Scholes might not be 9/10 each week but you can be sure they would give you a 7/10 at the very least most games. I don't even have to use the greats as examples. A player like Wijnaldum is not close to being as good as Pogba but he's a dependable, you know each week what he'll bring and that is what you want from your CMs.

Pogba struggles to put consistent 90 minutes let alone a whole season and it's a big problem. When he's at his best, he's a top 3 CM in the world but the volatility in his performances make him unreliable.
 

Clermontois

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The whole team including Pogba became less effective as the matches piled on. If you can't appreciate the effect fatigue had on the whole team, then enjoy.


What untrue media narrative? Was Pogba (or his agent) pushing to leave before we bought Bruno? Yes


Has he been more willing to stay since Bruno's come in, and the team has picked up? Yes

Is the team better since Bruno joined? Yes

He hasn't missed one penalty yet, so why are you so keen for him to stop taking them?

And disregarding all Bruno's assists and goals as simple passes and penalties (he didn't win himself)? :lol:
It's just so factually false that you've exposed yourself as extremely biased in your desperation to hype one player and undersell the other. Go and check again (assists, who won penalties, etc) and you'll see you've lied more than once.
I actually rate Pogba a lot, but I can acknowledge that there's another very special creative player who has joined and lifted the team so much so that the team is a more attractive prospect.




So Paul's agent is pushing for an exit up till January and the team has been in dire straights, you correctly point out that the team improved. Which "signings" did we make in January then? And even if you refer to the cumulative effect of the collection of all signings made for the season, Bruno counts right? The fact you can't escape is that his purchase was the one that visibly elevated us from a performance and results perspective.

You say he's still our difference maker, but now he has help? Yes! He has help as there's another creative difference maker in the team. Why does it have to be one or the other with some folks?
We are not talking about the whole team you mentioned Fernandes was on his last legs and still making game changing differences and I responded as it was not true, not even close. Nothing but a media narrative and gullable fans have lapped it up.

How do you know he was pushing to leave? He never said anything remotely along those lines bar Japan which was not even clear cut. Just like not knowing Paul was pushing to leave I also do not know that he is more willing to stay, again another media narrative. Paul is an especially private individual so no one can say for sure what he wants to do. Now that Real Madrid have been humiliated I can very well see them coming back in for him and maybe Anthony so no one knows if he will stay or not.

It is not whether I want Fernandes to stop taking them or not it is more about who was taking them before he came as well as who is going for the golden boot. Paul and Rashford are overly nice guys but I can see Rashford demanding them next season to increase that goal tally and I would not blame him.

This is the fallacy mate I do not need to undersell Fernandes, I watch him play and I can see. In the same breadth I do not need to hype Paul as I can see and between the two there is no comparison. I have said before that I am greatful for the impact Fernandes has made he has come into the team and improved on Lingard and Parreira but to make him out to be anything more than a good player is a joke. When Paul used to take penalties people('fans'/media) always mentioned how many of his goal tally were down to penalties but you almost never see it for Fernandes and I know exactly why that is.

Jog on and spare me the Fernandes is special nonsense. Let us see next season when he is marked man how he does and Rashford takes back the penalties.
 

Rozay

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We will be a far better team once he leaves. This is like the Coutinho with Liverpool situation except he hasn't hit the heights of the Brazilian.

He's been here for four seasons now and we're at the stage where what we've seen is what we get with Pogba. I've never seen a top player that needed so many excuses for why he hasn't been able to perform at a top level consistently. His issue is that he's just not dependable, central midfielders are usually your most reliable players. Keane and Scholes might not be 9/10 each week but you can be sure they would give you a 7/10 at the very least most games. I don't even have to use the greats as examples. A player like Wijnaldum is not close to being as good as Pogba but he's a dependable, you know each week what he'll bring and that is what you want from your CMs.

Pogba struggles to put consistent 90 minutes let alone a whole season and it's a big problem. When he's at his best, he's a top 3 CM in the world but the volatility in his performances make him unreliable.
I think Pogba will always struggle to put a consistent 90 minutes together when it becomes a topic every time someone takes the ball off of him or he misplaces a pass. I’ve seen MOTM games get broken down into ‘great first 30-35 minutes, but then poor spell before half time. Better in the second half.’ Have you ever seen a single other player given a by-the-minute post-match assessment? If that was done for Bruno, Kevin De Bruyne or any other player, it would suddenly be revealed that they are not ‘consistent for 90 mins.’ Ever.

Just wanted to comment on that point because I’ve seen it so many times over the years, and it’s always one I found curious. Surely a player either has a poor game, alright game, or a good game? I’ve never seen this ‘let’s break it down into 5 minute segments and rate each one’ thing for any other player the way I see it about Pogba on Redcafe.
 

Focusmate

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He was desperate to leave but there were no takers at the asking price precovid and noone seems interested at all now.
His best course now is to turn it on at United, try and win some silverware and maybe Real will regain their interest. Win win for everyone in that case.
Will he sign a new contract though? Or let his continue to run down? Bigger money now or keeping one eye on forcing a move through next summer?
 

MalcolmTucker

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Honeymoon period, that is correct and after the break he was actually less effective as teams started to close him down much sooner. Watch next season when teams are at full flow and Rashford starts taking the penalties again all of these hyped up stats will subside and team as a whole will perform much better.

Fancy talking about lazy tag when you have just come in to this thread with an untrue media narrative; the only game changing difference Fernandes made post lockdown was to score penalties that he did not win himself or to make a simple pass to a player right in front of him after someone has made the more incisive pass between the lines to him. Cannot wait for this overhyping to dissipate.

If Paul stays which is not a given has nothing to do with Fernandes and more to do with the way the team has improved with different signings coming in. He still our difference maker but now he has a bit more help.


Nice try at continuing that myth mate but from the time he left us a boy until today Paul has always been the star on each of his teams and that is something that is decided by talent level not what the fans think. Fernandes will never be the main anything[except pk taker], once Paul is in the same team, time for prejudiced 'fans' to accept that and support their player. Their is a reason why Paul has rival teams after him and Fernandes does not.

This formation does not suit Paul or our team and the sooner we change to a 4:3:3 the better. Why not make the most of Paul's attacking ability when he along with Anthony are our most talented players, makes no sense and I cannot see him accepting that deep role for long.
Do you support Man United or just Pogba?
 

El Jefe

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I think Pogba will always struggle to put a consistent 90 minutes together when it becomes a topic every time someone takes the ball off of him or he misplaces a pass. I’ve seen MOTM games get broken down into ‘great first 30-35 minutes, but then poor spell before half time. Better in the second half.’ Have you ever seen a single other player given a by-the-minute post-match assessment? If that was done for Bruno, Kevin De Bruyne or any other player, it would suddenly be revealed that they are not ‘consistent for 90 mins.’ Ever.

Just wanted to comment on that point because I’ve seen it so many times over the years, and it’s always one I found curious. Surely a player either has a poor game, alright game, or a good game? I’ve never seen this ‘let’s break it down into 5 minute segments and rate each one’ thing for any other player the way I see it about Pogba on Redcafe.
I do agree that Pogba gets micro-analysed like no other player but that happens because of how great people say he is. Top players prove their worth on the pitch and its obvious to both rivals and fans alike. The same way his detractors break down his game is the same way his OTT supporters cling on to the good parts of his game too. You don't find City fans arguing with rivals about why KDB is world class, there's no need to because we all know he is. In Pogba's case there's so much debate because you have people trying to justify why he's this great midfielder while others are doing the exact opposite trying to say why he isn't.

This is Pogba's fault rather than anyone elses. He's yet to convince the footballing world of his ability on a consistent basis. While KDB or Bruno might also have inconsistent performances within a game, they've shown they have the ability to put a consistent season together and that's something Pogba hasn't done in four years here.
 

DWelbz19

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Not that worried as I don’t think he’s going elsewhere, but I think Pirlo and Juve will start twerking for him soon. He’s exactly what that team bereft of any sort of creativity and guile are missing.
 

LoneStar

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While he’s a very good player on his day, I don’t think our play will be affected too much if he leaves and we sign a decent replacement. Again, the key being we replace correctly ( which statistically hasn’t been our forte tbf)

Him and Matic are good against teams who sit back, and not press, where we can control the possession. Both are not good against pressing though.
 

Rozay

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I do agree that Pogba gets micro-analysed like no other player but that happens because of how great people say he is. Top players prove their worth on the pitch and its obvious to both rivals and fans alike. The same way his detractors break down his game is the same way his OTT supporters cling on to the good parts of his game too. You don't find City fans arguing with rivals about why KDB is world class, there's no need to because we all know he is. In Pogba's case there's so much debate because you have people trying to justify why he's this great midfielder while others are doing the exact opposite trying to say why he isn't.

This is Pogba's fault rather than anyone elses. He's yet to convince the footballing world of his ability on a consistent basis. While KDB or Bruno might also have inconsistent performances within a game, they've shown they have the ability to put a consistent season together and that's something Pogba hasn't done in four years here.
Paul Pogba was United’s best player last season, and one of the best players in England.

And Bruno hasn’t shown the ability to put a consistent season together anymore than Pogba has. There’s just a different narrative around them.
 

AFC NimbleThumb

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Paul Pogba was United’s best player last season, and one of the best players in England.

And Bruno hasn’t shown the ability to put a consistent season together anymore than Pogba has. There’s just a different narrative around them.
This./

Vive la Pogba FC
 

cyberman

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This./

Vive la Pogba FC
He has 47 goals in his last 97 games as a AM and a lot as a no 8.. Thats a a strike rate that matches Martial and Rashford this season, spread over 3 seasons.
So yes, he is consistent. Thats goals only ffs, I havent even looked up assists.
He is the definition of consistency. Evaluating footballers doesnt begin and end with when a player joins Utd.
 

KennyBurner

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Haha, just saying it as I see it JP. The midfield is rubbish!

The shape is terrible, we are basically playing 2 in midfield and not 3 - and regularly end up 2 vs 3 in midfield - and then the two that we do have cannot press the ball and will be passed around easily if we came up against a City or good continental side. There’s also 15/20 yards between each player - Matic is hanging around the centre backs, Pogba is in the centre circle, Bruno is with the strikers. No scope for any interplay or triangles etc from our midfield 3.

As I said, I think the 3 are all top players, but they are not a unit at all, they are all just doing their own thing, and they will be exposed against an Arsenal, let alone City.
Its up to the manager to fix that but as we all know I dont think he has the tactical knowledge to implent it. If he did we would have seen it by now.

Bruno is really the problem as he doesnt drop back deep enough when we are building in our OWN half. Matic form a back three with our defense and suddenly you have pogba all alone surrounded by opposition waiting to receive a pass. Bruno needs to provide himself as another outlet for matic or our defenders to pas too. We will keep failing to beat a press if bruno doesn't do this. Its already bad enough that AWB is a dead end and the trigger for opposition to press.
 

KennyBurner

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We will be a far better team once he leaves. This is like the Coutinho with Liverpool situation except he hasn't hit the heights of the Brazilian.

He's been here for four seasons now and we're at the stage where what we've seen is what we get with Pogba. I've never seen a top player that needed so many excuses for why he hasn't been able to perform at a top level consistently. His issue is that he's just not dependable, central midfielders are usually your most reliable players. Keane and Scholes might not be 9/10 each week but you can be sure they would give you a 7/10 at the very least most games. I don't even have to use the greats as examples. A player like Wijnaldum is not close to being as good as Pogba but he's a dependable, you know each week what he'll bring and that is what you want from your CMs.

Pogba struggles to put consistent 90 minutes let alone a whole season and it's a big problem. When he's at his best, he's a top 3 CM in the world but the volatility in his performances make him unreliable.
Unreliable or not there is no other player we could get this summer that is better than him. Move on.
 

Adam-Utd

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I do agree that Pogba gets micro-analysed like no other player but that happens because of how great people say he is. Top players prove their worth on the pitch and its obvious to both rivals and fans alike. The same way his detractors break down his game is the same way his OTT supporters cling on to the good parts of his game too. You don't find City fans arguing with rivals about why KDB is world class, there's no need to because we all know he is. In Pogba's case there's so much debate because you have people trying to justify why he's this great midfielder while others are doing the exact opposite trying to say why he isn't.

This is Pogba's fault rather than anyone elses. He's yet to convince the footballing world of his ability on a consistent basis. While KDB or Bruno might also have inconsistent performances within a game, they've shown they have the ability to put a consistent season together and that's something Pogba hasn't done in four years here.
People like to say Pogba is rubbish just because he's pogba.

In the year he was our top scorer and assister people were saying he's rubbish and should be sold. How does that make any sense?

The sensible ones know he's a top player, but when KDB was having a rough patch nobody even mentions it.

Pogba is definitely held to a different standard by pundits, opposition fans and more imporantly our own.

The only people who seem to judge him fairly are actual footballers and coaches/managers.
 

Canagel

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What a player :drool:

Deserves better than being stuck in DM to be a water carrier
 

Rozay

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Its up to the manager to fix that but as we all know I dont think he has the tactical knowledge to implent it. If he did we would have seen it by now.

Bruno is really the problem as he doesnt drop back deep enough when we are building in our OWN half. Matic form a back three with our defense and suddenly you have pogba all alone surrounded by opposition waiting to receive a pass. Bruno needs to provide himself as another outlet for matic or our defenders to pas too. We will keep failing to beat a press if bruno doesn't do this. Its already bad enough that AWB is a dead end and the trigger for opposition to press.
It’s a big problem.

Our tactic seems to be to play the ball into Pogba with no teammates near him, and hope he can hold off one or two or dribble them - and then we can get going forward.

In addition to the build up, I just think in terms of the general play too. If we are being pressed in midfield, again, is Pogba just supposed to dribble one or two on his own? I mean, he is capable, but obviously will be dispossessed sometimes too. I don’t see any sort of quick one-two in central midfield to evade opponents. The midfielders are rarely that close.

With regards to coaching, I have faith in the current set-up still, however, the lack of a pre-season will be problematic in this respect. This is when shapes and things can be worked on. But you would think with Michael Carrick there, who has played the role at a top level - he would know about the difficulty, especially as he himself struggled when isolated and pressed but also typically had Scholes within 5/10 yards of him. I remember countless one-twos between Carrick and Scholes to keep possession in the middle.
 

AneRu

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Haha, just saying it as I see it JP. The midfield is rubbish!

The shape is terrible, we are basically playing 2 in midfield and not 3 - and regularly end up 2 vs 3 in midfield - and then the two that we do have cannot press the ball and will be passed around easily if we came up against a City or good continental side. There’s also 15/20 yards between each player - Matic is hanging around the centre backs, Pogba is in the centre circle, Bruno is with the strikers. No scope for any interplay or triangles etc from our midfield 3.

As I said, I think the 3 are all top players, but they are not a unit at all, they are all just doing their own thing, and they will be exposed against an Arsenal, let alone City.
It's hard to disagree with this but I think this issue is tactical not much of the players' fault. I don't know why we have to play Bruno that high and Matic that deep, with the work rate, pressing and comfort in possession exhibited by teams around us its suicidal.

Pogba is an 8 and off the ball he tries to play as a 6½ it follows that if we are going to play a 4-2-3-1 then Bruno has to drop into midfield especially without the ball and during the initial phase of the build up.

I doubt we'd be able to play the Matic - Pogba - Bruno midfield against top teams and not get overrun in midfield. This is where we need a more robust DM than Matic given what we lose if we drop one of Pogba or Bruno and without signing that type of DM we will fail next season, top 4 is the best we could achieve even with Sancho.
 

Rozay

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It's hard to disagree with this but I think this issue is tactical not much of the players' fault. I don't know why we have to play Bruno that high and Matic that deep, with the work rate, pressing and comfort in possession exhibited by teams around us its suicidal.

Pogba is an 8 and off the ball he tries to play as a 6½ it follows that if we are going to play a 4-2-3-1 then Bruno has to drop into midfield especially without the ball and during the initial phase of the build up.

I doubt we'd be able to play the Matic - Pogba - Bruno midfield against top teams and not get overrun in midfield. This is where we need a more robust DM than Matic given what we lose if we drop one of Pogba or Bruno and without signing that type of DM we will fail next season, top 4 is the best we could achieve even with Sancho.
Pretty much. And I did say that the individuals are top players, it is more a system issue. I don’t think the trio works. At least not in its current format. In the current setup, Pogba has basically become the Herrera replacement, which I don’t think he can do.
 

AneRu

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Pretty much. And I did say that the individuals are top players, it is more a system issue. I don’t think the trio works. At least not in its current format. In the current setup, Pogba has basically become the Herrera replacement, which I don’t think he can do.
Difficult to see how we can solve this without going for a Makalele type of DM, good as Matic is he is not suitable for a role that effectively carries two #10s. Overlooking this will be a monumental feck up and could ruin our season.
 

sammsky1

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Paul Pogba was United’s best player last season, and one of the best players in England.

And Bruno hasn’t shown the ability to put a consistent season together anymore than Pogba has. There’s just a different narrative around them.
I think specsavers have an offer on and that you should take advantage of it.
 

Nikelesh Reddy

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Hopefully we“ll get him signed up on a long term contract soon.Despite his irritating prescpence off the field,he’s still a phenomenally gifted player who can improve us substantially...
 

Rozay

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I think specsavers have an offer on and that you should take advantage of it.
I won’t argue with you that a player voted in the PL team of the season was one of the PL best midfielders, and his team’s best player.
 

El Jefe

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Paul Pogba was United’s best player last season, and one of the best players in England.

And Bruno hasn’t shown the ability to put a consistent season together anymore than Pogba has. There’s just a different narrative around them.
The fans and players voted for Shaw as our best player last season. Even if we go with the narrative that he's judged more harshly by the fans, are we saying his fellow teammates also don't appreciate him fully?

Bruno is yet to have a full season with us but in the half season he's been with us he's been more consistent and impactful than Pogba has in four seasons. Bruno was awful in the last 4 games of the season and everyone admitted it. The difference between them is Bruno has afforded himself a cushion due to excellent consistent performances.
 

Rozay

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The fans and players voted for Shaw as our best player last season. Even if we go with the narrative that he's judged more harshly by the fans, are we saying his fellow teammates also don't appreciate him fully?

Bruno is yet to have a full season with us but in the half season he's been with us he's been more consistent and impactful than Pogba has in four seasons. Bruno was awful in the last 4 games of the season and everyone admitted it. The difference between them is Bruno has afforded himself a cushion due to excellent consistent performances.
Bruno was awful in his last 4 games. He’s had other average games that Pogba isn’t allowed to have, outside of that 4. And he played about 15 games in total, I don’t know what catalogue of consistency he has apparently built up in that time.

Also, if you want to take the player’s opinion as gospel, it is clear they think he’s a lot better than some blinkered interneter does. And he was voted in the team of the season by the whole country, not just his mates at the club.
 

El Jefe

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Unreliable or not there is no other player we could get this summer that is better than him. Move on.
We don't necessarily need better. We need a more reliable CM and one that offers more balance to our team.
People like to say Pogba is rubbish just because he's pogba.

In the year he was our top scorer and assister people were saying he's rubbish and should be sold. How does that make any sense?

The sensible ones know he's a top player, but when KDB was having a rough patch nobody even mentions it.

Pogba is definitely held to a different standard by pundits, opposition fans and more imporantly our own.

The only people who seem to judge him fairly are actual footballers and coaches/managers.
He's held to a different standard because people say he's a top/world class CM. It comes with the territory but it seems like some fans of Pogba just can't seem to understand that.

KDB will never be criticised like Pogba because he performs at a higher level than Pogba. He's been a top 3 performer in the league for 3 of his 5 seasons in the PL.

I've never seen a player who's supposedly top class not have even one outstanding season in four years for a club. KDB, Modric, Matic, Yaya, Kante, Fabregas, Coutinho, Eriksen, Silva etc have all had fantastic seasons but Pogba hasn't. His fans will scream conspiracy though.
 

KeanoMagicHat

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Pogba is both overrated and underrated comparing to who you talk to, a player who brings extreme opinions. He has never been that bad for United, his first season for example he was actually very good and if you see some of the chances that were missed when we drew all those games and finished 6th, he could have had a De Bruyne-like season. There is nobody better that United could buy ability-wise, maybe they could buy a more loyal player, cheaper or with a nicer agent, but you want Pogba in your team and any team would want him in their squad.

But also you'll see Pogba put in 2 or 3 great games and others will be like 'best midfielder in the league/world'. Pogba has all the skills, physical and technical, but his game awareness prevents him from being one of the very, very best. You see that in games like Southampton where he is too easily targeted or West Ham when he handled the ball. He makes some erratic decisions, his concentration can be poor and coasts in games. In that way he's a bit of a luxury player and if you have the players around him to do the bread and butter stuff then he can be devastating at what he does best - like he does for France. In that way Bruno was a great signing because it took away some of the burden.
 

Rolaholic

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I think specsavers have an offer on and that you should take advantage of it.
Well his fellow contemporaries in the league who watch him up close and personal every week voted him into the best XI for the season and he quite literally led the team in every major statistical category.

By any metric he was our standout last season but I'd like to hear why you think that sharing that notion means someone is blind...

Always funny to see actual players opinions differ so vastly from the opinions of fans to the point where other teams players feel compelled to tell those fans to come off it :lol:
 

SATA

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We all love United
Sometimes we don’t realised what an absolute star and quality player we have on our hands. Use him properly and we will receive the rewards. You lot better treasure him while he’s still here. The recently concluded season without him playing was absolute dross until Bruno came in and provided abit of spark
 

Rolaholic

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Sometimes we don’t realised what an absolute star and quality player we have on our hands. Use him properly and we will receive the rewards. You lot better treasure him while he’s still here. The recently concluded season without him playing was absolute dross until Bruno came in and provided abit of spark
Guaranteed the same lot would complain about a lack of quality and ambition in the squad if he were tearing it up somewhere in Spain or back in Italy after leaving us

Thankfully the club and especially the current manager seem to have bigger plans and see things a bit more long term than the short-sighted and reactionary tunnel vision many fans seem to have.
 

El Jefe

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Bruno was awful in his last 4 games. He’s had other average games that Pogba isn’t allowed to have, outside of that 4. And he played about 15 games in total, I don’t know what catalogue of consistency he has apparently built up in that time.

Also, if you want to take the player’s opinion as gospel, it is clear they think he’s a lot better than some blinkered interneter does. And he was voted in the team of the season by the whole country, not just his mates at the club.
Bruno has played 20 games for us and he's getting no less than 8/10 based on his performances.

Pogba being voted in PFA team of the year last season got more ridicule than Henderson's POTY award this year. He had a monstrous 2.5 months when Ole joined and that happened to coincide with the voting period. After this he was the horrendous version of Pogba although the team as a whole was terrible.

I do agree that Pogba faces harsher criticism from rivals and pundits but if we are being objective Pogba hasn't delivered yet for us. He's not a flop but he's not really been great either. That's the real reason he's criticised, rather than any narrative or conspiracy.