Neil Humphreys: Pogba raises the bar for Man United at last
But the superstar must defeat his biggest opponent - inconsistency
Dazzling in the Champions League is all well and good, but can Paul Pogba deliver on a wet weekend against Wolverhampton Wanderers?
The old joke about flaky foreigners struggling to get down and dirty in the English Premier League is literally true in the case of Manchester United's superstar.
He walked like a man against Young Boys yesterday morning (Singapore time). Now he's got to show he's hungry like those Wolves.
Pogba has long had a tendency to raise his game in the spotlight, as if his match rating directly correlates with the size of the TV audience.
In the Champions League, he scored twice and set up a third, entirely at home in his elevated surroundings.
In United's defeat at Brighton a month ago, he was abject, trudging around as if the occasion was beneath him.
But there's no doubt about his upward trajectory in recent weeks. Before his swaggering display against the Swiss outfit, he was no less effective against Burnley and Watford.
A similar performance against Wolves would confirm an undeniable renaissance of sorts, a sure sign of a natural-born extrovert happy to be showing off again.
The reasons for Pogba's sudden improvement are a matter of conjecture. His agent, Mino Raiola, has stopped talking, focusing on the characters on his client list rather than the characters on Twitter, which has certainly helped.
Jose Mourinho has similarly eased off on the public putdowns, perhaps acknowledging that they were succeeding only in increasing Pogba's desire to get away.
Or maybe Pogba has simply recognised that his dream of a Barcelona move is off until the end of the season, so there's no harm in adding a few euros to his transfer fee in the meantime.
Either way, the more he wants to reign in Spain, the more English football needs to keep him.
There's a reason why he sells more United jerseys than anyone else. He's the last of the comic-book midfielders in modern football, an elegant box-to-box battering ram that has almost fallen out of fashion with all that pressing and surging.
Watching Pogba against Young Boys was like chasing a toddler who needs a diaper changed. He didn't stand still. He waddled off whenever he liked. Mourinho has perceived the Frenchman's wanderlust as a lack of tactical discipline in the past, a problem for a manager who advocates a rigid structure.
In fact, the last time United played in the Champions League, Mourinho picked Scott McTominay over the club's record signing in the Round of 16, sending out an extraordinary statement.
Pogba had the superior pedigree. McTominay had the discipline. For Mourinho, it was an easy choice. But the United manager has relented a little and we're all benefiting from Pogba's weekly showcases.
His first goal against Young Boys was an art exhibition in three stages. He sold a dummy, bought some space and launched a missile into the top corner. His second from the spot made it four from six games.
But the stats are less significant than the manner of Pogba's play. He couldn't stop smiling. The 25-year-old dashed around like a tongue-flapping puppy let loose at Bishan Park.
He couldn't quite believe the extent of his freedom.
He had the captain's armband and his manager's blessing to push forward, take free-kicks, hit long or short passes, shoot on sight and generally aspire to a level of excellence that was way beyond his opponents.
Honestly, the EPL has missed this kind of midfielder.
Old Trafford once had Bryan Robson and Roy Keane and English football had Steven Gerrard, Frank Lampard and Patrick Vieira, among others, the rugged automatons who ran like N'Golo Kante and finished like Bobby Charlton.
Pogba is a rarity, though, perhaps the only EPL footballer equipped with the lot. David Silva dribbles better. Kevin de Bruyne has a greater passing range and Kante would outlast the Duracell Bunny, but Pogba has a unique combination of all of the gifts required to be the complete midfielder.
And yet, one stubborn flaw remains.
He exhilarated against Young Boys. He exasperated against Tottenham and Brighton. When he loses the plot, his team-mates tend to lose the game.
It's not an accident that three United wins coincided with three accomplished Pogba performances.
So Wolves represent a fascinating test tomorrow night, offering the kind of sprightly opposition that could brush past a disengaged Pogba.
In terms of talent, he has nothing to fear from Nuno Espirito Santo's men. Pogba's greatest opponent will always be his own inconsistency.
- Neil Humphreys' new children's book - Abbie Rose and the Magic Suitcase: Telling the Otters to leave Home was a Really Big Mistake - is out today. Available at all Singapore bookstores.
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