Sport
Paul Pogba has started as he needs to go on at Manchester United
Upon their respective arrivals in Manchester last summer, Pep Guardiola and Jose Mourinho dominated the headlines. Given their history as managers of Barcelona and Real Madrid, and the heat their rivalry generated, it was assumed that would only restart. Everyone watched on with huge excitement, anticipating fireworks.
But it didn’t happen that way. City chief Guardiola, who claims to remember Mourinho fondly from their shared time at Barcelona when the latter was assistant to Bobby Robson and Louis van Gaal, has tried to avoid the trademark mind games of his opposite number, while the Red Devils boss only goes public with comments as a way to enhance his chances of winning. Given how Chelsea stole the limelight while both Manchester clubs faltered in the title race, there was no need for the next chapter of the most captivating coaching battles in recent years.
Now, though, that could all change. A lot has been made of City’s spending in particular, as they became the first English club to spend over £200million in a single window. Manchester United knew what they had to do to become Premier League champions for the first time in five years, but there are still doubts as to whether they have managed it yet, albeit with a fortnight remaining until the transfer deadline.
United’s Failures Last Season
Goals were clearly their biggest issue last season, a criticism never too far from a Mourinho team. Draws against the likes of Stoke City, Bournemouth, Middlesbrough and Burnley at Old Trafford became the main difference between title glory and finishing sixth and relying on the Europa League to secure their Champions League return. In one sense, that was true, but only because there was a lack of support for 28-goal striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who has since left the club. Often, if he didn’t score, the team didn’t score.
So far, there has been no answer to that. Ibrahimovic’s replacement is Romelu Lukaku, who scored in Sunday’s 4-0 win over West Ham, but there hasn’t been another major attacking addition. Paul Pogba is a close friend of Lukaku, and after netting himself against the Hammers looks like hitting the form expected of him when he made his then world-record £89million move from Juventus last summer. Although he struggled for fitness early on, the France international did not impress under a lot of pressure.
Support for the likes of Juan Mata and Henrikh Mkhitaryan in behind the striker has been suggested as an area in need of reinforcements. Mourinho is known to be a huge fan of Inter winger Ivan Perisic, who could offer a new dimension for the Red Devils in the final third. But between Mata, Mkhitaryan and Pogba, not to mention Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial, there should be enough quality to supplement Lukaku, who will be looking to win the Golden Boot having lost out last season to Tottenham’s Harry Kane while at Everton.
Pogba’s struggles were another factor in Manchester United’s inability to make a real challenge for the title. Strong, quick and tall, he has all the physical attributes to thrive in the English game, but he has incredible technique without the low centre of gravity to be a traditional playmaker. Although he complimented the energy of Ander Herrera in midfield last season, he often felt a bit shackled and there is a real sense that one of Mourinho’s main goals this summer was to give him more freedom, hence the slightly surprising capture of Chelsea’s Nemanja Matic, who put in a man of the match performance in on his debut.
The ‘Paul Pogba Role’?
Looking at how Mourinho sets his teams up, there is always one midfielder who takes on a role more important than any other. At Porto it was Deco, before Frank Lampard, Wesley Sneijder and Mesut Özil took up the mantle at Chelsea, Inter and Real Madrid. In his second stint at Stamford Bridge, Cesc Fabregas held the key. All are different types of player, and Pogba offers other things too, but in many ways Mourinho has built the team around him. At his best, he imposes himself on games with his blend of power and agility, something few in world football can match, and if he can do that more often this season, Old Trafford could well be celebrating a 21st league title come May.
The arrival of Matic never looked like a safe bet, mainly because everyone expected another signing between the lines. Mourinho’s options may still feel a bit narrow, but Martial and Rashford are looking more than capable of thriving out wide, while Mkhitaryan and Mata are also in the mix. Matic may well unlock the true potential of Pogba, and thus the true potential of this Manchester United side.
Making sweeping judgements off the back of one game is dangerous, but Paul Pogba looked at his best against West Ham, dominating in the middle and getting on the scoresheet. Jose Mourinho’s rivalry with Pep Guardiola died down last season, but if the Frenchman keeps that up, the fire could soon return.
