Paul Pogba has responded to critics who suggest he does not produce enough in terms of goals and assists by citing the records of some of the greats of football he grew up watching.
The Manchester United midfielder has scored 16 goals across competitions this season, a personal best for his career, and added 11 assists, but still faces criticism for his lack of consistency.
However, Pogba, who won the World Cup with France last summer and was named to the PFA team of the year this season for the first time, believes he is suffering from a lack of perspective when it comes to judging his performances, saying several legends of the game had similar statistics to him and adding that the numbers produced by players like Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are the exception, not the norm.
“Football has changed a lot. I grew up watching the exploits of great champions, real legends like [Alessandro] Del Piero, [Luis] Figo, [Francesco] Totti and many others,” the Frenchman told Icon Magazine.
“All have been champions, the best in the world, but perhaps many of them did not achieve more than 20 goals per season.
“Now the data, the statistics, the numbers, often seem to have become the only parameter of judgment.
“That, on the one hand, is good, it is part of the evolution of modern football and the desire to play the ball more and more. But we often tend to forget how difficult it has always been to score more than 20 goals, even for the big players.
“And today perhaps even more so, because the distance between the teams of high level has been reduced, especially in big competitions.
“Messi and Ronaldo have shown in recent years: doing what they did, maintaining those stats – that is the exception, not the norm.
Pogba, whose United future is the source of constant speculation as he continues to be linked with moves to Real Madrid or Barcelona, especially as the criticism of his performances in England continues to linger, added: “If an attacker today scores ten or 15 goals, he is likely to be told that it is not enough. But the player’s work must be judged with perspective.
“You have to remember that someone like Pavel Nedved won the Ballon d’Or without his team winning the Champions League or without having scored much himself. He was simply the best in his role and was rewarded for what he was capable of doing on the field.”
Pogba and Solskjaer.
Pogba also weighed in on the discussion over his best position. It has been a widely-held belief that he is best suited to playing on the left of a midfield three, but former and current United managers Jose Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer have both shifted his role to get the best out of him – and the 26-year-old says he is more versatile than people give him credit for.
“[I can play] on the right, on the left, in front. I don’t really care,” Pogba said.
“I can play behind the attackers, in front of the defence. It depends on the ideas of the coach, the style and the philosophy of the team that I play in.
“Because we can never forget that football is a team game and if the team works well together, we will all have more fun.
“Paul here or Paul there: Paul is a midfielder and his task, more than ever, is helping the team do what they set out to do – beyond the obsession with the goal, especially in front of the players of my position. Luckily, I also score goals, but that’s not what matters in my case.”
