Paul Pogba had a decent season at Manchester United last year but many thought he would have been  better.

Sometimes it’s hard to manage expectations when you sign for a club with an £89m fee attached. In the end the French midfielder scored five goals and created four assists in the Premier League.

In many games Pogba looked restrained and a bit confused about his role within the team. He seemed unsure if he was to be creative or hold his position or sit back and protect the defence.

In all truthfulness the Les Bleus midfielder isn’t a holding player, his tackling isn’t the best (nor the worst) and he’s not disciplined enough to stick to marshalling in front of the defence.

Jose Mourinho identified that he had to bring in a player who had the defensive nous to compliment Pogba. In essence he needed a defensive midfielder who would give Man Utd’s number six license to roam.

The Portuguese manager clearly thought back to his Chelsea days and decided that Nemanja Matic would be the ideal signing.

Many were surprised that Chelsea’s heirarchy sanctioned the £40m sale. Blues boss Antonio Conte was clearly miffed by the sale:

‘Matic knows very well what I think about him.’

‘The importance for me about this player, who is a really good player, a top player, very important for our team, but sometimes you must accept this crazy transfer market.’

‘And sometimes you must accept different decisions. But he is a great loss for us.’

Matic is a very intelligent player, who remains disciplined in front of his defenders. He’s gets about the pitch well, gets challenges in and makes interceptions. Interestingly he doesn’t get noticed by the referee much, last season he only picked up four yellow cards and zero reds in the Premier League.

His game isn’t all about his defensive qualities either. The Serbian created seven top flight assists last term, that was more than Pogba. He also enjoyed an 87% passing success rate in the Chelsea midfield. He also has a good passing range and isn’t just a holding player who gets the ball and gives it to his nearest teammate.

At 6ft 4, the middleman adds even more height in an already tall United side. He also brings a winning mentality, plenty of top level experience and importantly he knows exactly what Mourinho wants from him!

In his Premier League debut for the Red Devils, Matic showed his class and also showed us that he can help get more out of midfield maestro Paul Pogba.

Matic’s defend first attitude means the Pogba can venture further forward without worrying about anything behind him. The former Juventus man didn’t have that luxury last season and that’s where the confusion started.

In their first league game together they worked hard as a partnership with each player knowing their role within the team. Magic fitted into his new surroundings seamlessly and the new freedom for Pogba saw him get on the scoresheet and win the man of the match award.

That led to Paul coming out and praising his new teammate:

‘Against West Ham, Matic was starting behind and I could worry more about attacking. I feel good playing that way,’

The way the duo helped control the game should cause other sides in England’s top tier to be fearful. United’s engine room won’t be as easy to breakdown and there’s now an added threat of an unleashed creative force in Paul Pogba.

It’s strange but one of the key points to Nemanja Matic’s game is that he allows other players, Pogba in particular, to flourish and it worked wonders last weekend.

That kind of balance and harmony in midfield could see the two bossing so many midfield battles and should see Manchester United challenging once again for the Premier League trophy!

Posted on August 18th, 2017 by scott
Filed under: Article