Manchester United don’t necessarily need Paul Pogba anymore

Paul Pogba is a world-class midfielder, but with players like McTominay, Fred, and Fernandes playing well, does Manchester United really need the Frenchman?

There aren’t many players in world football who split the opinion of fans as much as Paul Pogba does. Some think of him as a world-class midfielder that any club would be lucky to have. Others see him as a world-class midfielder who is more of a luxury than a necessity to a team. Lastly, the 3rd group of people doesn’t consider him a top player whatsoever. You likely fall into one of these 3 categories, and whichever you fall into, there’s definitely some talking points to back up your opinion.

However, it’s tough to deny that Paul Pogba has been one of the key cogs in Manchester United’s team ever since joining in 2016 for a then-world record fee. He never quite hit the world-beater levels that once seemed inevitable, mostly due to a lack of talent around him, but Pogba has still had a strong career at Old Trafford.

Things have started to fall apart lately for the Frenchman though. Pogba went down with an injury early in the 2019-20 season and has not featured since, but the signing of Bruno Fernandes in January has actually made people forget about Pogba somewhat.

The Portuguese international has been a revelation since joining the club, and with Fred and Scott McTominay playing the best football of their careers this season as well, you tend to wonder whether Manchester United should simply cash in on their most valuable player, Pogba.

https://twitter.com/ManUtd/status/1250415075698991106

Pogba’s entourage has also brought in quite a bit of unnecessary toxicity as well, with infamous agent Mino Raiola leading the charge as usual. This sort of thing is unwanted at football clubs, and Pogba brings quite a bit of baggage that is difficult to handle, especially when it comes to the media.

If Manchester United truly trust a midfield trio of McTominay, Fred, and Fernandes, with solid players like Matic waiting in the wings as well, then letting go of Pogba might be the very best option. They have the creativity in the middle now with Fernandes, whereas Pogba was once the only creative player in the team.

Don’t get me wrong, Pogba is definitely a world-class player who brings mouthwatering quality to the midfield, but you sometimes get the feeling that he brings more issues to the table than solutions.

Of course, they could still use another midfielder or 2, but if they can let Pogba make his dream move back to Juventus or to one of the Spanish giants this summer, Manchester United would have more cash in the bank to stock up their team with more stable, trustworthy talent.