I'd rather we went for Griezman but I'd be happy if Pogba came.
Paul Pogba | Undergoing Medical | Helping out the Laundry Ladies
- Thread starter KM
- Start date
-
In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik (@Rood) is joined by CEO Duncan Drasdo and Financial Director Andy Green from the Manchester United Supporters Trust for a special episode on all things behind the scenes at Old Trafford including a brief history of MUST and their aims today, views on INEOS and Sir Jim Ratcliffe so far, and the Old Trafford regeneration.
I would say yes he does have elite vision and passing, he is fantastic when pressed in midfield I would say he is also a good tackler and leader but he doesn't really control the pace of games but that usually comes with age and experience I think he is world class given he is one of the top players at Juve who have won 4 titles in 4 year and go far in CL and he also just played in the final of the Euros
Last edited:
One thing that I don't see mentioned very often is Pogba's physical attributes. Considering there has been so much defence of Fellaini on him simply because he's big, I'm surprised more people aren't excited that we'll be getting a midfielder who is of similar size and strength but is also a superior footballer in every conceivable way. And also whenever we sign a small player there are always people banging on about how he'll struggle to adapt in such a physical league. Well surely that means Pogba won't struggle to adapt at all? That's a positive, right?
If played in a more advanced role and given the freedom he needs, he'll be the driving force of our midfield; bombing forward, dribbling, doing the unexpected, pulling off a 30 yard screamer now and then. We've not had anything remotely close to a player like him in midfield for a long long time.
Think about it from the perspective of a football fan and not as if you're playing Football Manager with a set budget, and the transfer is actually kinda exciting. And for once we're not being used by a player to get a new contract, and we're not going to quibble at agent fees, or get beaten to him by Real Madrid or PSG. After 3 years of misery at this club, come on, be happy.
If played in a more advanced role and given the freedom he needs, he'll be the driving force of our midfield; bombing forward, dribbling, doing the unexpected, pulling off a 30 yard screamer now and then. We've not had anything remotely close to a player like him in midfield for a long long time.
Think about it from the perspective of a football fan and not as if you're playing Football Manager with a set budget, and the transfer is actually kinda exciting. And for once we're not being used by a player to get a new contract, and we're not going to quibble at agent fees, or get beaten to him by Real Madrid or PSG. After 3 years of misery at this club, come on, be happy.
Right, the discussion was much better when posters were talking about their genitals and what to do with them, while reacting to the news.
Nainggolan is your typical box-to-box with an enormous stamina and a great shot on him. He has decent passing skills for a player of his role but he is much further away from controlling the game than Pogba. Same applies for Kante, who covers a ridiculous amount of ground with his endless running but his actual passing skills are very limited, he wins the ball back and passes it short to someone more creative.I did say they "can"They are all three rather young midfielders.
I have honestly seen less of Naingolan and maybe Kanté too compared to Verratti. But the few times I did watch them (for their clubs mostly), Kanté and Naingolan show good fight in the middle and good enough technique to release a good pass quick from their half, notably when their team has just won the ball back. I'm assuming that having that composure on the ball (thanks to good technique and movement) deep in your half does allow you to pick the speed and lenght of your distribution.
If i use Scholes as a benchmark, I'd say Verratti has his poise in midfield and distribution. Naingolan in comparison, not as good a long range passer as Verratti, but he has more fight and a wicked shot. Kanté has a bit of everything, but not as good a passer as Verratti and will probably not score as much as Naingolan. One thing they all have is an ability in their movement to make space for themselves in the middle that makes it look like they all the time they need to make the right pass out of their half. That is one element I have not seen in Pogba's game, despite him having the talent to pull it off. It is a question of mind over matter I think, or maturity. I feel that Pogba is very much attracted by scoring goals.
Don't get me wrong, I get your criticism about Pogba not being able to orchestrate the game, he is much closer to Gerrard than Scholes in that regard, but you picked awful examples (bar Verratti) to illustrate your point, imo
Excellent player and someone who will improve you massively. Why should you guys worry about the cost? I wish we could bring a player like him in.
He's got room for improvement but mourinho will get that out of him. I can't see past utd and city for the title next season.
With Pogba and Mkhitarayn in midfield, martial up top and de gea in goal you have a great spine.
A little scary for a pool fan
He's got room for improvement but mourinho will get that out of him. I can't see past utd and city for the title next season.
With Pogba and Mkhitarayn in midfield, martial up top and de gea in goal you have a great spine.
A little scary for a pool fan
people argue about price for many reasons
1) pride - going to the office or on their social media account and getting to brag about how cheap they got a player for especially when their opposition fan friend bought a similar type player for extremely more money
2) opportunity cost - people like when you get the best possible person for the price, which makes sense. if neymar is available for 60 million, Mkhitaryan for 25 million and you buy Memphis Depay for 50 million people are going to have a moan that the money was spent poorly as the money could have been used better.
3) budget - we don't exactly have an endless amount of cash even if we still do have alot of it. spending a certain amount on 1 player means you won't have that money to spend in the future so people want to make sure the money was spent correctly and not wasted on one person when it could have bought 3 or 4 others that could have improved team better in their heads
4) fifa /fm generation - everyone is a manager now thanks to these games and because they are awesome on this they feel they know better than the board and the manager about how to spend our money
these are the 4 main reasons why people care about money. Personally I don't really care that much as I think he is worth it. But I understand why people get their tits twisted over to such a price
Cheers man. So most likely he'll be competing with Rooney and Mata/Mick. Would you say he is a bit of a Yaya Toure then?
And the question about the pressure on him.
Pogba is one of the most cocky players out there. This guy went up against Fergie when he was 18 ffs. Demanded Fergie played him.
It won't surprise me if the price tag gives him more confidence.
Pogba is one of the most cocky players out there. This guy went up against Fergie when he was 18 ffs. Demanded Fergie played him.
It won't surprise me if the price tag gives him more confidence.
Technically no, before approaching a player or his agent you need his clubs permission to speak to him.
But thats not how it works in reality, every club does it so no one kicks up a fuss these days. Every team taps a player up to gauge interest before making an official bid.
I think United reported Real to Fifa for tapping Ronaldo up but they were not punished so i doubt anyone's bothered reporting a team since.
Zidane is someone who would have done well in any position. Pogba is best a a box to box CM but if we are trusting him to be our mid field saviour that wont happen . Hoping we will take a punt on Verrati when he decides to move
Is anyone debating Pogba's qualities?
I disagree with your appraisal of "has been doing it ... for club and country". Because first, he doesn't play in the same position for his club and his country. Second, a moment or two of good football aside, I wasn't impressed by his consistency in the role given to him for the national team. He didn't have much of an impact on the game because he was too deep, against Germany his best moment came when Kanté walked-on to free him from some of his defensive duties.
Once again it is not for a lack of ability, but I just think he instinctively wants to be closer to the opposition box to make things happen.
That said, I'm fairly sure Mourinho intends to use him like he did Lampard, which is a role that will in theory fit him like a glove. It can prove very interesting because technically I think Pogba > Lampard.
Cheers.
We don't have CL football so we simply have no choice but to overpay for him. If we waited till we were back in the CL and could offer what he is actually worth he'd be at Madrid and we'd never get the opportunity again. This is simply the only chance we have to sign one of the most sought after young midfielders in the world.
Hype and bias. I think Pogba has a strong all around game, without being outstanding in any bar maybe long shooting. I want him here, however we have seen players with superior talent/ability than Pogba at aged 23. Some who were match winners/goal scorers. I feel the signing is more a statement of intent. No longer will Real get their man. No longer do we have to watch them stockpile the top players. We are rising from the ashes
I'm not even Pogba's biggest fan and I find the obsession with price tedious.
He is simply the best attainable midfielder on the planet for us.
Verratti
Koke
Modric
Kroos
Iniesta
Vidal
Will not come.
He is simply the best attainable midfielder on the planet for us.
Verratti
Koke
Modric
Kroos
Iniesta
Vidal
Will not come.
Zidane playing as a DM in this France team would have produced similar results to Pogba. That's because France dominated most games so he wasn't really tested. I would have liked to have seen Zidane as a full back going up and down the wing. I question if he would have had the stamina or the discipline to do the job.
Not comparing the two but the simple fact is, Pogba is better then you think but can only influence games if teams use him right. As for Verrati - he would cost 150 million probably - should psg ever sell him.
Plus Gündogan and Krychowiak already went elsewhere.
I don't know, I am similar to you. He hasn't impressed me that much in the Euros though so I'm hoping he had an "off tournament"
Had a shit game yesterday. I hope he cuts out this part of his game where he'll over do something.
There is a fine line between a 2 and a 3. Is the number 10 one of the midfield 3? E.g. Did Chelsea play a 3 man midfield - Matic Fabregas Oscar - or is the 10 a "second striker" ahead of a 2 man midfield?
There is no doubting this guy is very good, ok, may not be world class, but he has that potential at such a young age.
Yes you can throw names like Verratti around but would PSG sell for 100m....No, so ask yourself, what would they sell for? 150m...? 175m...?
There are probably other players out there that we could acquire for a bit less, but Pogba is a dream signing for most clubs.
Also, Pogba is an absolute specimen of a player. If he can put his potential with that frame, the guy could be a monster.
The fee? Yes it's a lot. Personally, I think some of the fee is all paper talk, I think he'd move for about 80m, but is that his value? If Pogba was here, I wouldn't want to sell him for 80m.
And yes, we could spend that money on a few players, but players in this bracket are chances, look at Depay and Rojo for examples. When you pay big money for the top level of players, they rarely fail.
Now lets put this deal in perspective. I will use 90m as the fee as it's in between the 100m reported and the 80m I think it would cost to get done.
-------
These are the percentage of the kit manufacturer's deals. (all prices are relative to what I found on the internet)
Pogba = 120% (90m)
Wanyama = 110% (11m)
Benteke = 130% (32.5m)
Sanchez = 120% (36m)
Batshuayi = 110% (33m)
De Bruyne = 525% (63m)
Now, I could use other transfers to put this in perspective also, like Andy Carroll at the time of his deal, Torres when he moved to Cheslea or even Son, who moved to Tottenham which would have been over 200%
What I am getting at is, we are spending within our means, and as the money that comes into the club is so much more than any of our rivals, if we do spend this kind of money, so what, we can, why not attract the biggest names in football
Yes you can throw names like Verratti around but would PSG sell for 100m....No, so ask yourself, what would they sell for? 150m...? 175m...?
There are probably other players out there that we could acquire for a bit less, but Pogba is a dream signing for most clubs.
Also, Pogba is an absolute specimen of a player. If he can put his potential with that frame, the guy could be a monster.
The fee? Yes it's a lot. Personally, I think some of the fee is all paper talk, I think he'd move for about 80m, but is that his value? If Pogba was here, I wouldn't want to sell him for 80m.
And yes, we could spend that money on a few players, but players in this bracket are chances, look at Depay and Rojo for examples. When you pay big money for the top level of players, they rarely fail.
Now lets put this deal in perspective. I will use 90m as the fee as it's in between the 100m reported and the 80m I think it would cost to get done.
-------
These are the percentage of the kit manufacturer's deals. (all prices are relative to what I found on the internet)
Pogba = 120% (90m)
Wanyama = 110% (11m)
Benteke = 130% (32.5m)
Sanchez = 120% (36m)
Batshuayi = 110% (33m)
De Bruyne = 525% (63m)
Now, I could use other transfers to put this in perspective also, like Andy Carroll at the time of his deal, Torres when he moved to Cheslea or even Son, who moved to Tottenham which would have been over 200%
What I am getting at is, we are spending within our means, and as the money that comes into the club is so much more than any of our rivals, if we do spend this kind of money, so what, we can, why not attract the biggest names in football
It's like getting a date with a supermodel, but then moaning that the restaurant and hotel room is too expensive. Who cares 
you've got to enjoy life a little guys!
you've got to enjoy life a little guys!THIS THIS THIS. Honestly does my friggin head in, "Owwwww but hes so expensive", No sh!t the best players cost the most and guess what 5.1Bn has just been pumped into the league, some people need to get seriously real. This window is a new stepping stone in the Premier League. Palace are about to sign Benteke for 32m, Have any of you been to Selhurst park (Its a dive) its amazing how these kinds of clubs are improving and I love it. The best players should play in the PL and we are top of that tree in terms of revenue. The days of 16m for Kagawa are well and truly dead.
All of your points are fantasy I never once went on social media or the office and said "guess what, we just signed Schwienstieger for 9m!" If I did I would be met with "erm ok, is he any good now?" Now when I go into the office and say "Did you see Martial at the weekend" NO-ONE says "yeah but he will end up costing 80m, gotta balance the books...." its utter non-sense. Pogba would have an Insane impact on the club that alone is worth 100m.
In terms of the best available, not sureif you have had a look around, the next best is Gomes (who is available) so why not go for the best? Pogba is our player, he is one of us. He is a supreme athlete and a wonderful attacking midfielder who will be world class in 2 years time, he will have a similar impact to Lampard. Would you rather have that for his premium or James McCarthy who is a Box-To-Box who scores rarely but has no special qualities for around 30m?
Our budget is the biggest in the world, people forget we are currently operating at a higher turnover than Madrid, we are the richest club in the world, you dont get to boast about that if you don't spend any of it like a tight fisted old retired business man, there is a famous saying "you have to spend money to make money".
The FM/FIFA generation consider United as irrelevant, when you play those games online etc its PSG/ManCity/Madrid/Juve and Barca they play as since they have a collection of the best players. Who wants to play as Schwienstieger/Morgan and Herrera when you can play as Veratti/ Pogba/ Kroos?.
Lets all take a step back, perhaps JUST PERHAPS. Our new manager Jose Mourinho wants to win the league, wants to give a big F U to City, Madrid, Chelsea the money players in the world and actually build a team that can dominate games and have a sprinkle of flair. Tell me, someone, please, for the love of all that is good why the hell we wouldnt want to sign Pogba and build an elite midfield? even for 100m of our poisonous owners precious pension funds? Isnt it about time we stopped pissing about and actually took the initiative and destroyed the other clubs financially, commercially and most importantly on the field.
Sorry Rant over. P.S I don't mean this to come across as a personal attack, its just this has been winding me right up.
There is no pride in not leveraging our past success and revenue to beat the opposition.
Great post!
Another way to look at is that, yes Pogba is £100m. But if you say we signed Bailly, Zlatan, Mkhitaryan and Pogba for about £160m that sounds more reasonable.
People keep comparing it to how much we paid for Ronaldo, and don't think it sounds like a good deal.
How much do you think a 24 year old Ronaldo would be worth today? £150-180m easily.
How much do you think a 24 year old Ronaldo would be worth today? £150-180m easily.
I've just read the last 10 pages. The amount of rubbish being posted about money is ridiculous.
Cast your minds back to the summer we signed Valencia, Owen and Obertan. Or how about The Summer of Moyes & Marouane. Our fans were seething about the lack of money being spent on quality players and just going into the Glazers pockets.
Now, we've already made a statement getting Mourinho, Ibrahimovich and Mkhtaryan. We're looking at splashing huge cash on one of the biggest prospects in world football. And people are still moaning.
Manchester United make a f**k tonne of money every year. Pogba will sell so many shirts it will be ridiculous - he is the marketing department's wet dream. Do you really think that the owners and Woodward don't know what they're doing? They are money men, they know what we can afford and what we can't.
We'll probably ship 5-8 current squad players out and recoup 50-70% of the fee anyway!
I haven't been this excited about United for a very long time. For the love of god, enjoy it!
Cast your minds back to the summer we signed Valencia, Owen and Obertan. Or how about The Summer of Moyes & Marouane. Our fans were seething about the lack of money being spent on quality players and just going into the Glazers pockets.
Now, we've already made a statement getting Mourinho, Ibrahimovich and Mkhtaryan. We're looking at splashing huge cash on one of the biggest prospects in world football. And people are still moaning.
Manchester United make a f**k tonne of money every year. Pogba will sell so many shirts it will be ridiculous - he is the marketing department's wet dream. Do you really think that the owners and Woodward don't know what they're doing? They are money men, they know what we can afford and what we can't.
We'll probably ship 5-8 current squad players out and recoup 50-70% of the fee anyway!
I haven't been this excited about United for a very long time. For the love of god, enjoy it!
We are on the verge of signing a world beater whos only 23 and would walk into every team in the world and people are moaning about the price who bloody cares it's not your money.
It's like getting a date with a supermodel, but then moaning that the restaurant and hotel room is too expensive. Who cares
It's more like getting a date with someone you're told is a supermodel and yet whenever you see her she looks bang average under the lights, makes you hire a limo to take her to ridiculously expensive restaurants and insists that you tip her driver £50k for the privilege of picking you up.
Complete and utter rubbish, sorry.
You are joining the kneejerk clan in judging Pogba from a poor Euro 2016 tournament where the likes of Kane also looked awful but had a fantastic Premier League campaign.
Judge Pogba over the course of a season at his club NOT an international tournament where he is being played out of position!
Amen!
But the money your using came from your Boss but your boss has already taken 50% of your yearly salary up to this point in your life. So all in all consider it a gift and a rebate.
I am glad Mou doesnt sign palyers based on their tournament form. Just leaving that here.
Yaya Toure was one of the best players in the league, how was he not world class
Screw it. I want to be entertained. If this guy is a piece of the puzzle for the next great team, get him here. It not my money and the club can afford it.
Having already bought in 3 first team players its not like we need many more this window. So, we won't get mugged in the next transfer negotiation. Apart for RB, we are pretty much settled in majority of positions for next 3 years at least. Which means this could be our biggest transfer for a foreseeable future.
Having already bought in 3 first team players its not like we need many more this window. So, we won't get mugged in the next transfer negotiation. Apart for RB, we are pretty much settled in majority of positions for next 3 years at least. Which means this could be our biggest transfer for a foreseeable future.
I just thought that the last blindly optimistic post deserved some balance pal, so cool your boots.
How do you know I'm being knee-jerk and only judging him on the tournament? I've seen him plenty for Juve and always thought that he plays in patches. Admittedly, if Mourinho can bring everything together then he could be top class but £100m sounds a lot for what is largely potential.
And yes, I know it isn't my money, so please, please don't repeat that mantra.
Doesn't matter where the money came from - I can spend it on whoever I want. Considering the scenario, do I keep seeing this often underwhelming woman, whose previous suitors have all ditched her for being high maintenance?
Holy painful analogy Batman.
But she has been STUNNING in her previous relationships and believes she has something to prove by dating your ugly ass even though you have a chipped tooth and scar running down your eye, she sees the potential there but needs convincing and you have alot of money that you can spend and haven't for years. Bear in-mind you dumped her once before and not much has improved since.
You would be mad not to give it a go. All her other mates who are very good looking are in relationships and her potential is sky high above them, she just needs some Jose love.
I don't know how much exactly he would be worth but i reckon if Ronaldo still played for us currently theres no one who could afford him including Real and Barca. Maybe only PSG if they stretched their compliance with FFP.
Christ the state of this thread over the past few days.