AFP/Getty Images
COMMENT: Stop Blaming Pogba!
Who here can genuinely claim to have found the answer, or know what this team is truly worth? Well, everyone, if the last month’s press is to be believed. But are we rushing to conclusions?
Let’s take Pogba, for instance. He’s had a bad start to the season, arguably for the first time since Italy discovered him three years ago. But are we so sure that’s it’s all on him? Preseason talk put the onus on him replacing Andrea Pirlo, but is it that simple? The rest of the midfield doesn’t seem to be doing much, either, and the Old Lady is struggling at creating anything behind the strikers.
That has to do with a number of things, including a transfer window that wasn’t great to begin with (and that neglected to find a replacement for Claudio Marchisio) not to mention the lack of quick strikers able to link with the midfield.
Blaming Pogba has as much to do with us looking for a scapegoat as it does with the Frenchman’s lack of verve.
Remember, the former Manchester United youth is now being asked to run twice as much (Evra has barely left a mark), so it’s no surprise that he’s less incisive when shooting on goal.
Far too often, Pogba finds himself chasing after the ball rather than passing it. He’s running in circles because the team around him simply can’t (yet) hold a candle to last year’s Champions League finalists.
Yet Allegri says that the French international is “young, and has to learn to do a number of things and acquire experience”. Really? He’s nearly 22 years old, and has been running up and down Italy’s stadiums for three years.
It’s actually refreshing to see new team-mate Sami Khedira put his arm around Pogba’s shoulder and warning him against those self-appointed experts who liberally give him advice: who knows how many have recently come up with #hottakes along the lines of “He’s great, but…”.
But what? He’s being hindered by a team that has yet to find the right mix, end of.
And it’s not like Max Allegri is completely faultless with regards to the Andrea Rugani case, either. One of Serie’s most impressive defenders (let alone youngsters) last season, he seems to have disappeared from Allegri’s radar, the Livorno coach labelling him “another very young” player who should wait because he’s sitting behind “the best [defenders] in Europe”.
How’s that best defence in Europe looking so far? Maybe Rugani would have struggled too, but age has little to do with it.
And what of Dybala? Allegri barely speaks of him, the exact opposite of fans of the Old Lady, still scratching their heads at his repeated exclusions, despite being the Bianconeri’s topscorer this season with three goals. The plot thickens…
Fernando Pernambuco
Translated by Edo Dalmonte
