Man United face Leicester City in the Premier League this weekend and the manager has a tough decision to make, in terms of selecting Paul Pogba or Fred.
Pogba is obviously the star midfielder in the squad but under Ralf Rangnick, Fred has gotten a new lease of life and he’s finally playing like a Brazilian.
During this same time, Pogba’s performances have seen a dip and in a recent candid interview, the midfielder has also hinted that he is ready to leave Manchester United in the summer.
“You have to tell the truth: there were difficult times, especially when I have been in Manchester,” he said, as per Fotmob.
“When I’m not playing or when the results are not there, coming here [to the France national team] gives you a boost.
𝐇𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐬𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 2️⃣ 𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐬 𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙤𝙛 2️⃣!
𝐒𝐨 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐰𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐦𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐝!#𝐅𝐢𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐝𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐁𝐥𝐞𝐮𝐬 🇫🇷 pic.twitter.com/IhXv0NIZEo— Paul Pogba (@paulpogba) March 29, 2022
“Nothing is decided on my future, there is nothing done. I can decide tomorrow, as I can decide during the transfer window. I want to come back and finish the season well.”
This statement from the World Cup winner clearly means he is not going to sign a new deal so there’s every chance that he could be frozen out for the remainder of the season.
Ole and then initially Rangnick had no chance but to keep using Paul Pogba because Fred and McTominay both played a deeper role but the interim manager has now given Fred the license to venture forward which means, theoretically, Pogba is no longer needed.
Fred in the 21/22 PL [Man Utd season rank]:
89% long ball accuracy [🥈]
41 interceptions [🥈]
36 prog. passes received [🥈]
13 shots blocked [🥇]
7 final-third tackles [🥈]
4 assists [🥇]
3 goals [🥇]
2.55 shot-creating actions p90 [🥈]How many 🥇 at the end of the szn? 👀👏 pic.twitter.com/pKzOqI5oxs
— Statman Dave (@StatmanDave) March 30, 2022
If Fred can keep performing at the same level then Rangnick can keep Paul Pogba on the bench and since the German does not sign shy away from making the bold calls, we can clearly see Fred starting ahead of Pogba this weekend against Leicester City.
The manager will want to send out a clear message to the Frenchman that he too is indispensable so we think Fred is going to start alongside Bruno and McTominay in midfield while Paul Pogba will be available off the bench.