Paul Pogba hasn’t been the top player that Manchester United have needed him to be so far this season, according to Frank Lampard.
The Frenchman became the most expensive player in the world after rejoining the Red Devils from Serie A giants Juventus last summer for a fee worth £90million and has endured a mixed first season back in English football.
No player in the Red Devils squad has created more chances (50), completed more passes (1,567) or been successful with more take-ons (64) than the 23-year-old in the Premier League this season but with only four goals to his name so far as well as his lack of discipline in central midfield at times has left Lampard questioning if Pogba is living up to his huge price-tag.
“Spending £90m on a player is a signal of intent but I wouldn’t say he is the finished article,” the former Chelsea midfielder said on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football.
“When you look at him, I wonder ‘what’s his best position, what does he want to be?’
“As it stands, he hasn’t been a game changer. I wouldn’t say he’s naïve but his responsibility has to be more defensively minded. I feel harsh criticising him because his attributes aren’t defensive, maybe Jose Mourinho wants a defensive midfielder.
“If you want him to be the Paul Scholes of your midfield, is he a £90m player? Michael Carrick is the player you want on the ball, Paul Pogba should be scoring goals. If he’s not getting far enough forward, he’s not going to be scoring enough goals.
“The problem with him is he cost £90m, for that amount you expect a Bale, Suarez, Messi, Ronaldo. If you spend £90m, you don’t want a £90m problem. At the moment, you can see he’s not giving those numbers – Zlatan is giving those numbers. He’s a top player, Paul Pogba, at the moment, isn’t.”
Pogba’s form has dipped somewhat since the turn of the year, with his performance in the 1-1 draw with Liverpool at Old Trafford back in January one of his worst as he conceded a penalty for handball and also spurned a great chance to get on the scoresheet.
However, at the age of 23 , Pogba still has plenty of time on his side to develop into the world-class midfielder that his price-tag suggests he will be.
Taking Paul Scholes’ final season as footballer into account, it’s clear that Pogba thrives when influencing the game further forward judging by the fact the he leads the United legend as well as Michael Carrick when it comes to goals, assists and chances created in the Premier League per 90 minutes.
Although, dictating play from deeper positions is where the France international comes up short against the two pass masters. He ranks lowest in terms of successful as well as forward passes and is even behind Scholes when it comes to putting his foot in.
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