Stage Set for Pogba to Prove His Worth at Manchester United
Paul Pogba will have another opportunity to prove his value to Manchester United when the club faces Barcelona in the Champions League at Old Trafford.
Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu revealed that the Spanish club had been interested in Pogba before his move from Juventus to United in 2016 but could not compete financially with the English club’s then world-record £89 million offer.
“We couldn’t afford that amount of money at the time,” Bartomeu said.
“He went to United, and he’s making them better as a team because he’s one of the stars of world football.”
Despite his reputation and huge transfer fee, Pogba’s performances at United have often attracted criticism for inconsistency.
The France international is expected to start against Barcelona in what would be only his second start for United in a Champions League knockout match.
Under former manager Jose Mourinho, Pogba was left out of the starting line-up for both legs of United’s last-16 defeat to Sevilla the previous season following a difficult period in their relationship.
His only previous knockout start this season came against Paris Saint-Germain, when United lost 2-0 at Old Trafford and Pogba was sent off.
Suspended for the return leg, Pogba watched as a youthful United side produced a remarkable 3-1 victory in Paris to reach the Champions League quarter-finals for the first time in five years.
The arrival of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as manager in December initially brought out the best in Pogba.
The midfielder scored nine goals and provided six assists in his first 12 matches under the Norwegian as United enjoyed a strong run of results.
However, Pogba’s performances later declined, coinciding with a difficult spell for United in which they suffered three defeats in four matches.
His future at Old Trafford also became the subject of speculation after he publicly spoke about Real Madrid and expressed admiration for manager Zinedine Zidane.
Zidane, in turn, praised Pogba’s all-round ability, describing him as a midfielder capable of contributing both defensively and offensively.
For United, however, the challenge is to get that level of performance from Pogba more consistently.
The club has a long tradition of influential midfielders such as Bryan Robson, Roy Keane and Paul Scholes, and Pogba continues to face expectations that he should have a similarly decisive influence on important matches.
A strong performance against Barcelona would therefore provide him with the perfect opportunity to answer some of his critics and demonstrate why United invested so heavily in bringing him back to Old Trafford.
