Manchester United officially announced on Wednesday, 1st June, 2022 that midfielder Paul Labile Pogba and Jesse Lingard will both leave the club this summer when their contracts officially expire at the end of June.
Paul Pogba, 29 left Manchester United in 2012 for free and joined Juventus. He was in United’s academy team from 2009 to 2011. He got promoted to the Manchester United senior side in 2011 under former manager Sir Alex Ferguson but he could not command a starting berth nor was he able to get enough playing time. Pogba was signed by Juventus in 2012 where he went ahead to win the FIFA U20 World Cup with France and was crowned as the Most Valuable player.
His technical ability on the ball, passing quality and strength and power he exhibited made him excell in Juventus. Having midfielders like Andre’s Pirlo and Blaise Matuidi around him limited his defensive duties, allowing him to bump forward all the time to provide important assists as well as goals.
His performance kept improving and he helped Juventus win four Serie A titles. He was very impressive in the Juventus side that went to the UEFA Champions league finals in 2015. Pogba was shortlisted for the Ballon D’Or.
When José Mourinho got appointed as the new manager for Manchester United in 2016, his priority was to bring Pogba back to Manchester United. He believed at that time, Paul would be key for his midfield. Manchester United paid a transfer fee of 105m€ for Paul Pogba to return to the club.
His return to the club brought lots of excitement, but his inconsistent performance at the club brought him lots of criticism from the United fan base. Pogba’s lifestyle on and off the pitch have been questioned by most pundits as he’s seen to care little for the club and not committed enough to help the club to succeed.
Pogba on the other hand felt the club have betrayed him as he was promised that the team would be built around him so they can compete for trophies. Players who were recruited after Pogba signed were all seen as mediocre and not good enough to help them strive for success. Pogba was left disappointed. The manager who brought him back to the club had several issues with Paul and even branded him as a virus.
Paul started the 2021-22 season on a very good note by providing three assists in his first league match of the season against Leeds United under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, but he was met with injuries and could not fully recover to help United. He played a total of 20 matches this season, where he started in only 16 of them. Paul is likely to rejoin Juventus as the two sides are already discussing contract details.
He played a total of 154 matches scoring 29 goals since 2016. Even though his career is seen to be an unsuccessful one, his qualities as a midfielder is unquestionable.
Jesse Lingard is also leaving the club after spending over 20 years at the club. Manchester United is a boyhood club of Jesse Lingard and he leaves after over 20 years. Lingard, 29, joined Manchester United in the year 2000 at the United academy. He got promoted to the senior team in 2011, where he made 149 appearances scoring 20 goals. The English International could not command a regular game time at the club after being promoted to the senior team in 2011.
He leaves the club with the expectation of getting a team where he would be a regular player. West Ham United and Newcastle United are all interested in signing him, as well as AS Roma.
Manchester United are determined to recruit new players to fill the vacant position being left by these players. Edinson Cavani and Nemanja Matić have already left the club.
