Paul Pogba caused Manchester United 'all sorts of problems' with performance against Tottenham
Pogba was hauled off after 63 minutes during Wednesday's 2-0 defeat
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Paul Pogba was responsible for causing his Manchester United teammates “all sorts of problems” during their 2-0 defeat to Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday night, according Danny Murphy.
The Frenchman was withdrawn just after the hour mark for Marouane Fellaini – who was subsequently substituted himself seven minutes later – after failing to make an impact as Spurs overran United.
The defeat brought an end to Pogba’s 36-game unbeaten streak in the Premier League that spanned back to 2016.
Jose Mourinho played Pogba in a deeper central midfield role against Spurs and Murphy believes whole he is a world-class attacking midfielder, he doesn’t have the mindset to fulfil the defensive responsibilities bestowed on him.
“Pogba is one of the best attacking midfielders in the world, but defensively he is reactive rather than proactive,” Murphy said on BBC’s Match of the Day. “[Phil] Jones and [Chris] Smalling kept getting dragged out because Pogba kept vacating that space next to [Nemanja] Matic, and it just caused United all sorts of problems.
“Pogba has been great for United and I prefer him in a more attacking role. In terms of his defensive discipline, it’s not really in his nature.”
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments