Pogba silences critics with impressive performance on Man United debut
There was always going to be huge pressure on Paul Pogba’s shoulders after the Frenchman’s £89million move to Manchester United but the midfielder looked right at home on his return to Old Trafford in the side’s 2-0 win against Southampton.
The 23-year-old was given a starting berth alongside Marouane Fellaini and recovered from a nervous first touch where he gave the ball away to set up a Southampton counter-attack.
Pogba was deployed on the left of a midfield three for Juventus but looked comfortable in a two alongside the Belgian and was given licence to roam by Wayne Rooney who filled in during attacks.
Serie A’s emphasis on tactics and clean sheets never truly owed to the strengths of Pogba’s off the cuff game and the Frenchman played with the shackles off during a vibrant performance.
Pogba silences critics with impressive performance on Man United debut
Ibrahimovic’s double gave United a 2-0 win.
Ander Herrera or Morgan Schneiderlin are more likely to partner Pogba going forward but he showed a strong understanding alongside Fellaini, who was deployed in a deeper role alongside the Frenchman.
Zlatan Ibrahimovic gave the Red Devils the lead when he emphatically powered home Wayne Rooney’s cross with a strong header and the goal gave Pogba more room to operate in forward positions.
At one point after the Swede’s goal, Pogba picked the ball up in the centre of the park and showed off his athleticism with a driving run towards the heart of the Saints’ defence.
After beating three men, Pogba thought better of a shot at goal and sent the ball out wide to Anthony Martial but the run got the United crowd out of their seats.
Pogba silences critics with impressive performance on Man United debut
Pogba was making his first start for manchester United (Picture: Getty)
Mourinho insisted before the game that Pogba wouldn’t last 90 mins but the Frenchman’s performance was so that the 53-year-old had no option but to keep him on the field.
After Ibrahimovic’s second, it was comfortable for United and Pogba was at the heart of all of the side’s best moves.
If Pogba’s fitness is still not close to 100%, it looks ominous for United’s rivals that this was not the Frenchman at his very best.
The midfielder had the perfect opportunity to round off his debut when Henrikh Mkhitaryan slotted him in towards goal but he scuffed his shot in the dying minutes.
Regardless, it was a debut to remember for the midfielder.
