Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo claim made about Man Utd's Paul Pogba after exit hint
MANCHESTER UNITED midfielder Paul Pogba does not deserve the level of criticism he has received at Old Trafford because he cannot do it all on his own unlike Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Man United: Pogba is 'given too much negativity' says pundit
That’s according to former Manchester United defender Danny Higginbotham.
Paul Pogba’s second career spell with the Red Devils looks as though it may come to an end this summer after he recently admitted it “could be a good time to have a new challenge somewhere else” at an Adidas promotional event in Japan.
The France international has been strongly linked with a transfer to Real Madrid since he returned to United in the summer of 2016 for £89million, at the time a world record fee.
But Juventus are also thought to be in the hunt for the 26-year-old, with the Italian outfit having had Pogba’s talents for four seasons after picking him up on a free transfer in 2012 before selling him back to United for an incredible profit.
Since returning to Manchester, Pogba has been met with regular criticism for failing to live up to the hype of his signature having been in and out of form.
The World Cup winner was the club’s top goalscorer last season with 16 goals, adding 11 assists, across all competitions and was even named in the PFA Team of the Year by his fellow professionals.
But Pogba still came under criticism, especially after his form dropped away towards the end of the campaign as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men won just two of their final 12 games of the season in the Premier League, FA Cup and Champions League.
However Higginbotham thinks the sheer level of critique of the Frenchman is unfair, hinting that he does not have enough quality around him.
Paul Pogba could leave Man Utd this summer (Image: GETTY)
Paul Pogba has been linked with Real Madrid and Juventus (Image: GETTY)
Higginbotham feels Paul Pogba is unfairly criticised at Man Utd (Image: GETTY)
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You look at the way he plays and at some points he’s given a raw deal
Danny Higginbotham
And the player-turned-pundit insists only the likes of Barcelona talisman Lionel Messi and Juventus superstar Cristiano Ronaldo are capable of carrying a team on their backs.
Higginbotham - who came through United’s youth academy and had a brief stint in the senior squad but is better known for his spells with Derby, Southampton and Stoke - told TalkSPORT: “Obviously what Pogba did and what he said does not look good for United, and the first thing they need to do is sit down with him.
“He’s not helping the situation. But when you look at him as a player, at times I think he’s probably given too much negativity.
“Just look at the top teams in the Premier League at the moment - when you talk about Liverpool it’s about the collective, you talk about [Sadio] Mane, [Roberto] Firmino and [Mohamed] Salah.
“When you talk about Manchester City you talk about [Kevin] De Bruyne, both [David and Bernado Silva], [Raheem] Sterling and [Sergio] Aguero, and Tottenham the likes of [Harry] Kane, [Dele] Alli, [Christian] Eriksen and [Heung-min] Son.
“Whereas with Manchester United, when something goes wrong, it’s Paul Pogba’s fault.
Paul Pogba has hinted at an Old Trafford exit (Image: GETTY)
Paul Pogba shows off his incredible skills during trip to Japan
“That’s the frustration, because you look at the way he plays and at some points he’s given a raw deal.
“Yes, I agree 100 per-cent with a lot of fans about what he’s done at the weekend, it doesn’t help him or endear him to the United supporters.
“But I just think he has been looked at so many times as a negative, when - it doesn’t matter who you are, maybe apart from Messi and Ronaldo - you can’t do it on your own. It’s as simple as that.”
Man United reportedly want at least £150m if they are to lose Pogba this summer, with Solskjaer keen to build around the player despite him wanting out of the club.