The curious case of Paul Pogba

The 20-year-old French international has always been in the news – be it for the controversial manner he arrived at Manchester United or the acrimonious circumstances in which he left or his obvious talent, which, many believe will make him a great player or the disciplinary problems be it with his comments or the latest episode where he spat at an opponent grabbed himself a three match which brought his title winning season at Juventus to a premature end.

Many United fans consider a mistake letting him go. That, Sir Alex didn’t give him enough opportunities to showcase his talent and he eventually got frustrated and decided to pursue his career elsewhere after his contract ran down. Pogba himself said that Scholes coming back out of retirement was like a final straw that SAF didn’t believe in him and that he had to leave because of Sir Alex.

All those who follow United knows that no young player has made it the easy way at United. It has always been built on patience, perseverance and putting in the hard work, week in week out to prove to the gaffer why you deserve to make the grade at United. Fergie knows best how to nurture the talent and when to throw them into the first team. More often than not, he has got it right.

Pogba was ever-present in the youth setup during his first three years and was drafted into the reserves squad ahead of the 2011/12 season with a view of getting a few senior appearances under his belt. However, his appearances were few and far between, restricted to a few cup ties and substitute appearances, which pushed Pogba to leave for Juve on a free transfer in the summer.

There’s no questioning the boy’s talent. All rate him very highly and for such a young age, he’s physically strong and quite athletic with his long legs being a great attribute. But the question lies in his temperament and attitude. It is no secret that he and his agent had made an agreement long before the season ended. Was it just because they didn’t have the patience of making the cut the Fergie way or did they have their monetary interests at place? One can never know and its better not to assume. All that it will lead to is unending debate.

Anyways, this has been a breakthrough season for him at Juve. Football-wise he shone in the campaign in which The Old Lady secured their second successive Scudetto. But his season ended prematurely after the spitting incident got him sent off.

For all the talent in the world, such an act is disgusting and not at all something you can digest from a United point of view. Being a United squad player, you are expected to battle it out, bide your time and take the chances once they come. More importantly you are expected to conform to the United way of life. Maybe Fergie saw it that way and therefore, another bright prospect in Ravel Morrison left. And I certainly don’t regret United letting him go. The strength of the United squad is in its togetherness and if some player poses a threat to that, it is better to let them go.