Football

Berbatov weighs in on Pogba’s Man Utd future

PAOK’s new Bulgarian foward Dimitar Berbatov takes a selfie during his presentation at the Toumpa Stadium in Thessaloniki on September 3, 2015. Berbatov has signed to play for one season with PAOK, the Greek Super League club announced on September 3, 2015. AFP PHOTO / SAKIS MITROLIDIS (Photo by SAKIS MITROLIDIS / AFP)

Former Manchester United attacker Dimitar Berbatov had weighed in on the apparent unsettled nature of Paul Pogba at the Old Trafford club.
Pogba’s agent Mino Raiola confirmed this week that the France international player is “unhappy” and “needs a new team”.
Berbatov claims Pogba “would be playing or he would be out the door” if Sir Alex Ferguson was managing Manchester Unitedat present.
Pogba, 27, finds himself in a state of limbo after his agent, Mino Raiola, confirmed the player is “unhappy” and “needs a new team”.
Despite his representative dropping transfer bombshell earlier this week, Pogba was still involved in United’s crucial clash at RB Leipzig.Red Devils boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer summoned the midfielder from the bench in the second half as they crashed out of the Champions League with a 3-2 defeat.
In contrast, Berbatov claims Pogba would either have been exiled or would be starting if his former manager Ferguson was still in the hot seat.
“I don’t think this situation would have happened when I was playing for the club with Sir Alex Ferguson in charge, I don’t think anyone would have dared to speak out against the team and manager, out of respect,” Berbatov told Betfair .
“Yes, every now and then someone would come out and speak against Ferguson, but not many did. This situation would have been dealt with and either Pogba would be playing or he would be out the door.”
While Juventus arguably lead the race to sign Pogba, the Frenchman remains heavily linked with Real Madrid, where he would link up with compatriot Zinedine Zidane.
Berbatov believes Zidane may be able to get the best out his fellow World Cup winner, but admitted “it all depends on the player and his mindset”.
The former United striker added: “I’m sure a number of clubs would be interested in signing Pogba and I’ve seen a lot of rumours about him linking up with Zidane at Real Madrid.
“I want to see him go back to his best form because he is a great guy. Is going to Real Madrid the solution? Maybe, Zidane, his fellow countryman is there, and if he goes it would be a fresh start for him.
“As a player, you can learn something from every coach, not always good things, in the case of Zidane, I’m sure he would be great for Pogba because he played in the same position, and he was the best in that role, he can speak to him about it and they already have that connection of both being French.
“It might only be a few small things but Zidane has been there and knows what it takes to be the best midfielder in the world, which is something that I’d love Pogba to go on and be.
“But it all depends on the player and his mindset, you have to take onboard everything that a coach tells you, even if it isn’t compliments, you have to listen to the criticism and how to improve, sometimes you can’t surround yourself with people that love you and tell you how good you are, the truth hurts but it can be useful.”

Sammy Wejinya

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