Pogba needs to let his feet do the talking again and more Man United discussion points

Matt Jones - Editor 09:01 19/08/2018
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  • Manchester United head to the south coast to take on Brighton in their second fixture of the 2018/19 Premier League campaign.

    The Red Devils opened up with a 2-1 home win against Leicester City last week, while the Seagulls had their wings clipped in a 2-0 defeat at Watford.

    Ahead of the game, we look at three key talking points:

    Better call Paul

    Paul Pogba wore the captain’s armband against Leicester.

    Superb on the opening day against Leicester, Paul Pogba seemed to undermine his own performance in the aftermath when he alluded to getting in trouble if he were to lift the lid on things behind the scenes at Old Trafford.

    For all the criticism thrown Jose Mourinho’s way in handling his United players, Pogba isn’t entirely blameless. He will know himself he was way below the standards expected of an £89m player when he was in and out of the side last season. And his latest comments were hardly conducive to a drama-free start to the season for all concerned at Old Trafford.

    It would be great to see Pogba – like last week – let his feet rather than his mouth do the talking, and put in another commanding performance.

    United – bar the visit of fellow top-four contenders Spurs next weekend – have a kind start to the campaign.

    And a Pogba-inspired charge towards a possible title tilt would work wonders in quashing the summer’s doom and gloom while at the same time quelling Mourinho’s moans.

    On the back of a rousing World Cup win in Russia, Pogba’s sumptuous performance against Leicester had United fans purring. His comments post-match against the Foxes, however, were more than a little sly.

    It undid much of his brilliance. After firing in a fine penalty to give them the lead, his was a performance full of craft, cunning, courage and confidence. More of the same this week please Paul.

    Is Rom Luk-ing towards Premier League history?

    Prolific record: Romelu Lukaku.

    Romelu Lukaku would probably be the first person to admit his technical ability still needs some work – but the man is a pure goalscorer, of that there is no doubt.

    The Belgian has only just turned 25 yet is one of just 28 players to have found the back of the net 100 times or more in the Premier League.

    He has 101 goals in 220 games. Only Harry Kane (108 in 153 games), Sergio Aguero (143 in 206) and Jermain Defoe (162 in 491) are those ahead of him who are still playing. His ratio of a goal every 0.46 minutes places him joint seventh.

    If he were to match last season’s haul of 16 he would shoot up to 18th place on the list by the end of this campaign – overtaking such illustrious names as Didier Drogba, Paul Scholes and Ian Wright along the way.

    The question is, how much farther can he go? All the way to the top, Alan Shearer’s 260? Doubtful perhaps, but he, and Kane, should realistically push the Newcastle and England icon close.

    Say what you will about United’s boring style of play under Mourinho or their general travails since Sir Alex Ferguson’s exit, they will always be challenging for the trophy at the business end of seasons.

    Lukaku, as evidenced by last season’s tally, will be provided with a steadier stream of chances at Old Trafford than at Goodison Park. As he matures as a player and hones his game, we should also expect his scoring prowess to improve.

    Let’s see if he can get off to a flying start against the Seagulls.

    Will the real Jahanbakhsh please stand up

    What can we expect from Jahanbakhsh?

    After a scintillating season at club level in 2017/18, it’s safe to say a lot was expected of Alireza Jahanbakhsh heading into the World Cup.

    His Eredivisie campaign with relative minnows AZ Alkmaar – the club have won the Dutch top-flight twice (1980/81 and 2008/09 in their modest 51-year history) – was nothing short of stunning. In 39 games in all competitions he rocketed in 22 goals.

    During three seasons in the north of the Netherlands, the 25-year-old notched 34 league goals in 85 games and 37 in 111 total appearances.

    Three in 29 during his maiden 2015/16 campaign ratcheted up to 12 in 43 a year later before he really turned it on last term. Not bad at all, especially for a winger/attacking midfielder.

    Let’s talk about assists. Jahanbakhsh registered 12 in 33 outings. Brighton, it seems, have got some player on their hands.

    They will hope to get more from him than Iran did in Russia. Perhaps we should temper our criticism. Iran are a side built on defensive solidity by Carlos Queiroz and their opponents contained the 2010 world champions Spain and reigning European champions Portugal, as well as African heavyweights Morocco. So we were hardly likely to witness Jahanbakhsh at his swashbuckling best.

    He made his Brighton bow in a disappointing 2-0 defeat to Watford last week, emerging for a 20-minute cameo from the bench.

    He only touched the ball eight times yet made one key pass – which jointly led Brighton – and went on one dribble. With the Seagulls tipped by many to struggle to soar to last season’s heights, the Iranian schemer’s skill could prove pivotal.

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