You don't think Rashford is a creative player?
Really?
Without wanting to interrupt, I thought, that this seasons Rashfords was a totally different player from last years Rashford. Back then, there were spells, where he created moves by getting the ball in deep areas, playing in others, make crosses, cutbacks, movements. I don't know, if this is a personal thing or asked for by the manager, to be honest, I liked last years Rashford more because he improved the overall team performance while still scoring. This year, it was mostly scoring, which is great in itself but as has been pointed out - if there are to many scorer and not enough creator, you become easy to defend against.
I don't think a double pivot is the way forward either.
But as for the rest, that's how teams work. Pogba compensated for Kante's offensive flaws by being a beast of a passer in the world cup, while Kante was a beast defensively and they had a wonderful partnership. Pogba also played a big part in Mbappe being able to stay forward and be released with his favourite type of passes into space. That's how it works, and only stating that others compensate for Pogba's flaws and not taking into account Pogba's contributions is not a balanced way of looking at it.
I understand what you mean and you are right, if we could "just" add "a beast defensively" and an attacker of Mbappes quality, then I guess it could work. But thats probably way easier said than done and how big are the chances to get that? And are you really sure, that there are not more underlying factors in France's success than these two players? Varane and Umtiti at the center of defense isn't too shabby as well, certainly faster and therefor more mobile than Maguire and Lindelof. Heck, I just checked - in the WC final France played Pavard and L. Hernandez at fullback, players way more known for their defensive ability than for they attacking participation.
To be honest, I never really had the feeling, that Pogba was the star man in either France or Juve. A vital cog in a great machine. Is it worth a try to get a DM and try him with Bruno in front of the DM? Sure, but neither am I very optimistic that it would bring out the best from Bruno who since month is way closer to our striker (which suits him stats wise) than he is close to any centre circle. And I don't see a DM that is attainable either. Rice certainly doesn't strike me as very "beast-like".
My concerns stem from a slight fear of entering some sort of sunken cost fallacy. "We know, how talented Pogba is, so we cannot allow him to leave". The team should come first and if Pogba doesn't find a way to integrate himself into the team, than I know what I would do... If the manager also doesn't really find a way, it makes two for two...
I don't think, the player would be fine with some sort of golden-sub position, and I guess, extending his contract would even raise his wages. Wages he hasn't really paid back in performances (in relation to his talent) during the last years. (Admittedly not the best environment but still. And the environment isn't going to change anyway). I don't see any reasonable way and at this point, I simply have not enough hope left for him to finally become the player he potentially could be.
When Fred and Scott start and the only creativity we have is Bruno, we look pretty bad, pretty often. Compare that to when Pogba plays, and you'll see that he compensates a lot for the team's creative issues. With that in mind it makes the most sense to find a DM that can form a mutually beneficial partnership with Pogba alongside Bruno, and I wouldn't be so quick to say it isn't the solution when (1) it has worked to a degree elsewhere and (2) we haven't even actually tried it yet.
(1) Yeah the degree is subjective I guess, but it needs to be very high given the potential consequences (extending his contract) - and I don't think his impact justifies that
(2) Us not having tried that makes the outcome not more predictable unfortunately. And while I can understand your stance, from what I've seen from Bruno and Pogba, I don't think, they will work together as a box2box midfield, as long as we don't find a cross between Matic and Kante somewhere. They are simply not defensively proficient enough. If people around here bash McFred for their tackling or Matic about his "dribbled past"-stat, what would they say about these two?
I might be all up for it, if there wouldn't be a contract extension necessary. Pogba is a great player, one of the most talented in world football right now. I understand, fans don't want him to leave. But the problems he solves currently (yesterday not so much), can also be solved without him. Simply adding for example Sancho on the right adds another creator (probably an elite one) to the site. Coaching Rashford to be a little more of a creator than these days, can help, Mason learning a few moves from Cavani. We could get away with one major transfer in Sancho while keeping the relative security that McFred is able to offer while potentially adding a talent for the future there (because I see no obvious targets). Seems more reasonable to me.
(Having said that, I just don't see it with Rice. For me he is a "Maguire" just waiting to happen. Good player for insane money. So thats another factor in my stance, I can relate, being convinced of Rice, makes the "Bruno, Pogba, Rice"-idea more attractive to some.)
Pogba will still be a problem in that he cannot be a key feature of a successful team unless:
a) We decide to play Pogba rather than Fernandes (net loss)
b) We play four midfielders (McT*-Fred*-Pogba-Bruno), sacrificing a key component of our team - width, pace and/or a proper CF (net loss)
c) We play both Pogba and another key player out of position, whilst also dropping a key player (net loss)
The current train of thought seems to ignore these realities. We seem to believe that on the evening of his contract signing Rice (or similar) will transmogrify into a prime Makelele. We seem to believe that Lindelof can be replaced by someone who will become Cannavaro reincarnated when he puts on the shirt.
Neither of these will happen. There aren't transferable defensive midfielders or centre backs out there that can cover for Pogba's inability to do the basics of a central midfielder.
*Or a new holding midfielder
Very accurate description from my point of view.