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Former Manchester United star Paul Pogba has leapt to the defence of some of his most criticised former teammates at Old Trafford.
Being a United player is synonymous with being in the public eye and having your fair share of criticism.
It is a pressure all must face but that has only intensified over the last decade as results on the pitch have not matched the sky-high expectations that are set at the club.
Pogba was an example of a player who was constantly being discussed in the media and former Liverpool player Graeme Souness became famous for his apparent obsession with the midfielder, as he recently commented he “wouldn’t sign him on a free” after his return from a reduced drug ban.
In a recent interview with Sky Sports, Pogba was asked to respond to a question about a perceived “unfair focus” on players such as Jadon Sancho and Marcus Rashford.
He retorted that it was due to the size of the club that these players were playing for and suggested if they were plying their trade elsewhere, they would receive less scrutiny.
“Why the criticism? For performance or for something else? I think you’re at the biggest club in England with a lot of fans. They need to say something I guess and all the players you mention are talented.”
Pogba did state that the players are not helped by the fact that they don’t tend to play so well as a team and that is perhaps another reason more successful sides escape such negative commentary.
“You win as a team. You never point at one player at Man City but they play as a team, win as a team. When they don’t play well, it’s the team that don’t play well.”
“When you lose, you are going to get criticism.”
Pogba also defended the attitude of himself and former teammate Jesse Lingard from criticism from Wayne Rooney, implying he wasn’t telling the whole truth.
A report in the summer highlighted that United players are not only some of the most scrutinised by the public media but also face the most abuse online on social media. Six out of the ten most abused players in the Premier League represent the club, with Marcus Rashford sitting on top of the list.
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