Rohan Sengupta
According to former Manchester United defender Gary Neville, Paul Pogba must become the Red Devils’ serial matchwinner following his inspiring performance that turned the game around against Manchester City on Saturday.
The hosts went 2-0 ahead after half an hour, through Vincent Kompany and Ilkay Gundogan. It looked as if City would seal the title at the Etihad after the first-half goals but Paul Pogba turned the game on its head with two goals inside two minutes before Chris Smalling scored the winner in a thrilling 3-2 victory.
Former player Gary Neville believes that the France international has all the attributes to become a big player for the club and feels that it is time for the midfielder to start delivering regularly for Jose Mourinho’s side.
“I’ve said all year, Manchester United are a far better team with Paul Pogba in it. He brings arrogance, confidence and belief”, Neville told Sky Sports.
“But when you’re a player who is signed for that money, when you dance like he does and when you’ve got hair like he has you have to play well and you have to match it.
“It’s no good shouting and singing and not playing. You have to play well and he hasn’t in the last couple of months and he’s fallen out with his manager. It’s a difficult situation.
“He is a fantastic footballer and he makes Manchester United a better team. He shows great belief and confidence and shows total confidence in himself – but you have to deliver consistently.
“Manchester United have shown great faith in him to deliver, they paid a lot of money for him, and there’s a large expectation.
“The Manchester United badge carries a large responsibility. Manchester United fans don’t want robots, they want characters, but it’s then demonstrating it on the pitch and doing it consistently.
“He hasn’t done that in the last couple of months, but he is a good lad and a good player and I hope for him and for United that he can start now to affect the biggest matches and win the biggest games.
“That’s what he was brought in to do and today was a big, big turnaround for him. He needed that second half like you wouldn’t believe.”
In a game that threatened to get away from United, Paul Pogba delivered when it was most required, scripting one of the most dramatic comebacks in our history.
The first half was flat and Pogba never looked to drive United forward. In the second half, we saw a different player, who played with a big responsibility and led the team in fantastic fashion.
Amidst a lot of criticism, Pogba came up with the goods in the mega Manchester derby and let’s hope it’s the start of his revival.
