Paul Pogba will be suspended for Manchester United’s next 3 games after he saw red for a dangerous tackle on Hector Bellerin against Arsenal.
Whether or not the red card was merited can be disputed, you can make your own assumption based on the GIF below (this Twitter user clearly thinks it wasn’t!).
I still don’t understand how anyone believes this is a red card.
Bellerin literally covered Pogba’s path by almost lying on the ground. What was Pogba supposed todo when he was in a full running position? #mufc
— ?️idaN (@AidanMUFC_) December 3, 2017
The Frenchman had been a key figure in United’s side earlier in the season, before injuring his hamstring and being kept out of action for two months.
During that time, United continued to shine as if the midfielder was easily replaceable. That was until their clash with rivals Liverpool, which ended in a 0-0 draw. Since that underwhelming draw, the classy performances we were used to earlier in the season began to fade.
United scraped a 1-0 win against Benfica, and lost in shocking fashion to newly promoted Huddersfield. The performances continued to stagnate, and although Mourinho’s men were winning games, they seemed to be missing that bit of oomph about them.
The 1-0 defeat to Chelsea was the final straw, United fans and pundits alike agreed that Pogba was the missing ingredient – they needed him back.
Luckily, the 24-year-old returned during the next game against Newcastle, and it’s fair to say that the fear factor returned. A 4-1 win which included a goal from Pogba himself and Romelu Lukaku who was facing a lengthy goal drought, it was clear to see what United had missed.
Pogba captained United during their next game against Basel, and the midfielder controlled the game during the first half. He was substituted midway into the second half with the scores still at 0-0, and from there it looked like Mourinho’s men lost the plot – eventually losing the game 1-0 at the death.
But after their 3-1 win over Arsenal on Saturday, the first ‘big’ game United have won all season and the first that Pogba has played in, will the Red Devils suffer without him against City?
Statistics given via Sky Sports suggests that United are massively improved in the league when Pogba is playing – having not lost a single game and scoring over twice as many goals.
Sky Sports pundits Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher both admit the Frenchman will be a huge loss to United against City, particularly on the counter attack.
Former United captain Neville said: “Pogba makes a big, big difference. So when they went to Anfield, they couldn’t connect the deep defence to the midfield and into attack. He connects that, he links it, with those runs forward and his composure on the ball.
“City is a big game to not have Pogba. The person who can break the line is gone, but Jose Mourinho will be looking at how he can do it differently.”
Carragher agreed with Neville’s comments, saying Pogba will be a big miss for United. The former centre back also admitted he is ‘disappointed’ about the midfielder’s absence.
“I’m disappointed he’s not playing on Sunday because I would have loved to have seen how Jose would have used him, considering what he would have been up against in De Bruyne and Silva,” Carragher said.
It doesn’t take a genius to see Paul Pogba’s sheer quality. He will be greatly missed by United during their derby clash with City, and there will be a huge task ahead for Mourinho in terms of replacing the midfielder.