Former Manchester United midfielder Ander Herrera has revealed what he really thinks about Paul Pogba’s troubled tenure at the club.
Herrera’s Pogba view
Pogba returned to United to much fanfare and hype in 2016, for a then world-record fee of £89m.
While he enjoyed certain highs during his time at United, it is fair to conclude that he never fully realised his potential or met the expectations resting upon him.
Constant speculation surrounding his future, injuries and inconsistencies on the pitch highlighted his second stint, which ended in the summer of 2022 when he departed as a free agent.
The Frenchman managed 226 appearances for United in that second spell, netting 39 goals and providing 51 assists.
Herrera, who shared a dressing room with Pogba during this period, spoke to El Camino and had his say on what really went wrong for the World Cup winner in England.
“Paul is perhaps the player, apart from Messi, who’s something unique, with the most qualities I’ve seen.”
“He’s a midfielder who can win balls back, who can distribute, who can strike the ball with his left foot, who can strike it with his right, who can win duels, who can arrive in the penalty area and score.”
Herrera continued, “He had everything. And people ask me, why didn’t it work at United? Why didn’t it work during his time at United? I don’t know. I don’t have an answer. It’s true that with Mou, with Mourinho, there were issues, that there wasn’t a connection between them. That’s not something I’m just saying. It’s something they’ve said themselves.”
“There wasn’t a connection, but I also believe that football doesn’t end with one manager.”
“And it’s true that he hasn’t managed to fulfil the expectations. The expectations for Pogba were to win the Ballon d’Or. People could say, well, there’s Messi, there’s Cristiano, there’s Hazard, Neymar and Pogba.”
“If I’m not mistaken, those were the players being talked about for the next decade.”
Pogba is currently searching for his next club after parting ways with AS Monaco.
Zlatan disagreement
Herrera also shared details of an incident when striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic confronted him and Juan Mata for not passing the ball to him during a game.
According to Herrera, he and Mata were indeed reluctant to cede the ball to Ibrahimovic, but mostly because he kept missing clear-cut goalscoring opportunities.
Herrera told El Camino, “After a match, he came over and told Mata and me that we were passing the ball between ourselves and weren’t passing it to him. And I know why it was. It was because that day, he’d missed three one-on-ones with the goalkeeper, and he found it difficult to admit it. Do you understand?”
“But anyway, a top, top, top world-class player. A spectacular professional, an absolute beast when it came to work and discipline. With a lot of ego, as we can all see. But he was also important at United, and the season he arrived was Mourinho’s most successful season, when we won the trophies. It’s true that we didn’t win the Premier League.”
Ibrahimovic helped United win the League Cup and Europa League in 2017.
Featured image Marcello Endelli via Getty Images
