Louis Saha Exclusive: Paul Pogba is the Solution to Man United’s Struggling Midfield
Published 09.23am on 27 November 2024 by Matthew Banks
Former Manchester United striker Louis Saha spoke to SlotsWise this week to discuss Ruben Amorim’s first game in charge as United manager and what United need to be a success under him. He talked about how signing Paul Pogba could be “the solution” to Amorim’s midfield, why Marcus Rashford needs to learn to be “obsessed with football” again and why Joshua Zirkzee needs to find the link with Bruno Fernandes. He also discussed why he thinks Cristiano Ronaldo has the tools to be an elite manager.
What are your reactions to the Ipswich game and Amorim’s tactics in the game?
“I think overall, it was a decent start for Amorim, even if he didn’t get the result. United struggled with the intensity of the game in the second half, but he’s only had a few days with the players that came back from international duty, and that can always be tough.
“In terms of the tactics, you can already see what Amorim wants to do, and the players have more flexibility in a way to create space in midfield, which is how their goal came about. At the back it’s a change from Ten Hag, and it could go to three, five or even a two when they have the ball, which gives them options.
“Ipswich reacted really well, and they are a well coached side. Of course, there’s still work to do for United. They pressed well in the first half, but then faded. I don’t know why, but it seems like when one or two players are not at their best it does affect United’s capacity to create chances and to remain solid at the back. So I think it was a decent but not brilliant performance for sure.”
Rashford got the early goal. Can Amorim get him back to his best and what does he need to do?
“I really hope that Marcus Rashford finds consistency under Amorim. He’s under pressure to get back to his best now, as he’s had a lot of chances to prove himself, but it’s going to be tough. What Marcus has to do is to get back being obsessed with football.
“He has had too many outside distractions for too long, and now it’s time to make sure he has to find his feet and make sure he is not overthinking on the field. What we are seeing with Marcus is there is some doubt in his mind when he has the ball, things like extra touches when he shouldn’t or taking too long on the ball.
“All the outside distractions should be gone. The other week people talked about him being in the USA at an NBA game, which is a great experience for him but the international break is a good opportunity to get your head down and focus on football, especially with the arrival of a new manager and I think Gary Neville was right to call it out.
“The public will judge him for things like this and he has to actually understand the game a bit and understand the consequences because it’s way harder to perform on the field when you are constantly being criticised. You have to find the right balance and it is not easy.
“Marcus has too much talent to ignore this kind of advice, because the people saying it want him to perform. It’s crucial to have this connection with the fans, so he needs to be aware of the things that may upset them.
“Not many players have this kind of talent, and when you do, you almost have a duty to perform. So I’m always very frustrated when I see players with that kind of talent, getting the wrong balance.
“I think Amad can play anywhere on that right side really well, and looks like a natural wing-back. He’s got a great engine, he is very clever and very composed. He also seems to have this kind of arrogance at the right moment in his play, which sometimes he needs to have.”
Amad Diallo got the assist and put in a decent performance at wing back – could he make that position his own?
“He will have to get the right balance between defence and attack because if you defend too much, you can’t contribute as much but also you don’t want to leave your team exposed and I think Amad can do that. These are the types of performances we want to see from Amad and I think he was brilliant.
“His first contribution very early on in the game was great when he set up Rashford’s goal and he kept going after that. He didn’t lose the ball too much, he always found the right time to pass the ball or to accelerate away and dribble past a man, so I’m very impressed.
“I’m almost not surprised as well because he has shown his ability in the last year without Ten Hag giving him too many opportunities to impress. He is a special talent and I can see that he can adapt to many positions. He can play wing-back, as a winger, or even number ten where he can provide dribbling power in the centre of the pitch.
“There are a lot of things that Ruben Amorim can try with this boy. When you win the war in midfield, those wide players can get the ball at the right time and they can do so much damage.
“And that’s why I think in the second half against Ipswich, United exposed themselves too much with Casemiro and Eriksen and the middle, and then that’s why Garnacho and Amad had to work way harder. This is why it’s so important to fix the midfield for Amorim, so he can get Garnacho and Amad in attacking positions doing what they do best.”
What are your thoughts generally on Amorim, will he be a success and do you think he’s the right man for the job?
“The thing I have been most impressed with Amorim so far is his communication. I love the way he speaks about football and Manchester United. What he has said so far has shown humility, but also the confidence that is required to be a top manager. He is definitely someone who understands that some players need freedom to express themselves, while others need to be rigid and solid.
“We have so far seen some little signs of patterns that I really like, but the main thing we need is that consistency. We need Amorim to have the conviction to say we will play one system and give it time for the players to learn and master this and get it right, which is where I think ten Hag failed.”
What are his main priorities to get the best out of this group of players? He’s said they will have to suffer for a long period before they can be a success.
“I think Amorim’s main priority needs to be making sure the players have intensity and physicality. Physically if you are dominant, especially in midfield, you will be tough to beat because eventually those guys will dictate the tempo of the game and will create opportunities for your strikers a bit more.
“Often in recent years, United have lacked the intensity and the ability to win those 50/50s, challenges and that’s a big issue because the attacking players then have more defending duties and can’t do as much damage.
“You can’t ask all those very talented forward players United have to defend all day. It just doesn’t work. We need to find that right balance. For me, that’s very important. Having those players in midfield and having this role really nicely defined for them so they can keep the ball and they can really dominate physically wherever is how United will win games.
“I’ve seen there is a bit of a lack of power sometimes in this midfield, but also a lack of speed and sometimes creativity. I’ve seen when there is a patch of let’s say 60 to 70 minutes where it can be okay, but it doesn’t last 90 minutes and this is a big problem.
“I do remember my days with Roy Keane and others in midfield, you definitely did not worry because that midfield was just non-stop. So this is the area I’m looking at because it’s so important, and you see it on any team that has been winning trophies in recent years. They always have world-class players that really dominate the midfield.
“This midfield position is so important. You can see this with why Man City is struggling at the moment, because Rodri is injured and they are lacking intensity in midfield. For me this is Amorim’s number one priority to solve.
“Not having a deadly striker is definitely still a problem. It was good to see Rashford at the end of the cross from Amad, but I don’t think he has the killer instinct in front of goal to play as a number nine, where you definitely have someone who can create his own chances and also be able to score scrappy goals when the team is not playing well. Gyokeres could well be that man and he obviously has a history with Amorim, but the price tag could be an issue.”
Angel Gomes has been linked with a return to United. Could he be what the midfield needs?
“I think there needs to be a balance in the midfield and I don’t think Angel Gomes will be the solution. The solution is like someone who is really a master in that position, providing the link between the defence and the attack.
“It’s not an easy role to play and I see Angel Gomes as someone that is maybe not that kind of player. I think that the first priority for the manager will be a different type of profile, someone a bit more combative in midfield, who can provide stability.”
Paul Pogba has been linked with a sensational return to Old Trafford. Do you think this would be a good idea?
“Bringing back Paul Pogba would be a brilliant idea for United. In terms of talent, there are not many like Paul Pogba in the world. It’s all about creating a nice balance in midfield and he can provide so much. Because, yes, if you don’t have the right balance.
“Sometimes managers don’t want to have too big personalities in the dressing room and this is the type of thing that Paul Pogba, if he wants to come back will have to address, but he has had a tough few years and I think he wants to play at the highest level, to be back in the French squad and he will focus and show his best.
“I really believe that Pogba still has a huge amount of talent to show and his appetite to perform must be enormous, which could be a big advantage.
“Physically, of course, he hasn’t played. He has been injured a lot and with his ban he will be rusty, and those things don’t make it easy to get back to his best, but in terms of talent, there is absolutely no doubt he could be an important player for United.
“Paul Pogba is just an enormous player, and he should be playing for a top team.”
Joshua Zirkzee has had a tough start to life at United. Do you think he has the tools to be a success at the club or should they look to bring in Victor Gyokeres who worked with Amorim?
“When you look at the performances of Joshua Zirkzee and when you look at the body language, you can see that this guy is searching for form. He’s a different boy than he was when he was in Bologna and that is a worry.
“There are definitely things for him to work on, and at the moment, I don’t see the confidence and I don’t see the link between him and the other players in the team, so there is definitely something missing.
“I know that Zirkzee and Hojlund have the ability. I just don’t know why they can’t seem to have a relationship with Bruno, who is the best creator of chances in the league by far. You know, you look at the stats and Bruno Fernandes is by far the one who creates the most chances for his teammates. So I do not understand why the link is not there, and that’s a challenge the manager faces.
“It’s up to Amorim to find the link between United’s strikers and the creative players, and if they can’t, then he has to find the right players in the transfer market, whether that’s Gyokeres or someone else. I think in a few weeks we will have a good understanding of which way it goes.
“Zirkzee has still only been playing in the Premier League for a few months, so it’s also important to give him a bit of time. I remember Diego Forlan, for example, took like six months to score his first goal for United, and then after that we could see his talent, and he was a top, top player. So those things happen.
“I’m not worried about Zirkzee’s talent, I just want to see this link between him and his teammates to be fixed as soon as possible, because the longer it takes, the more damage it will do to his confidence.”
Cristiano Ronaldo’s career is coming to an end in the next few years. Do you think he will stay in football? Could he become a manager?
“For Cristiano Ronaldo, whatever he does after his playing career he will be elite at. It could be in management, it could be running a club at the highest level. The main asset that he’s got, he’s got the desire to be successful. So when you have that, you are happy to learn and to sacrifice a lot.
“It is part of his DNA, how he is built. So I do believe that anything Ronaldo wants to do, he has this mindset that is going to make him a success.
“However, as a coach, he will have to understand that the job is different to being a player. You have to adapt. Zidane managed to figure out that If you take the session and every time you show the players, how to do a piece of skill, how to dribble, how to do this and how to do that, that they may not be able to do things the way you can, because Ronaldo is one of the greatest of all time. If you embarrass your players as a manager it doesn’t work, because those guys need confidence.
“All those things Ronaldo would have to learn to be a top manager and I’m convinced that he can do it. He is definitely capable of being the manager of Portugal or Man United or whatever team that he wants to choose one day, because of the kind of person he is.”
