Manchester United picked up a 2-0 win against Burnley on Saturday but midfielder Paul Pogba did not feature in the matchday squad.
The player was out for almost three months with an injury but he did play 70 odd minutes across United’s previous two fixtures which was a clear indication that he was fit and ready to be named in the starting XI at Turf Moor.
But surprisingly, the manager chose to keep him out of the matchday squad claiming that he wasn’t ready.
Solskjaer said after the match via Sky Sports: “He’s been out for a long while, and he didn’t feel right, he reacted to that one [against Newcastle] so we’ll just have to take our time and get him ready for next time.
“He wasn’t ready today because he has not really done too many games, and he’s had two in three days or whatever, two performances. So he just needed another day of recovery probably.
“When you’ve been out for such a while it’s always going to take time before you are 100 per cent. Today I thought Fred and Nemanja [Matic] played really well.
“And of course, we got two real players out there. I don’t think many of you would think three or four months ago that Fred is going to be one of the best players away at Burnley, at Turf Moor. But he was excellent.”
And now many people have come up with various versions of why Paul Pogba was left out of the matchday squad.
- The first and the most obvious reason is that the midfielder still isn’t a 100 per cent meaning using him in such a tough away game was a risk that the Man United manager did not want to take.
2. The second reason as to why Paul Pogba did not play against Burnley was maybe because the manager has finally come to know for sure that the player will be heading out of Old Trafford during the January transfer window which is why Ole had chose not to use him.
3. The third and perhaps the most far-fetched reason is that Man United will take on Arsenal in midweek and Solskjaer had wanted to rest Paul Pogba so that he is fully fit for the Emirates encounter.
