Paul Pogba did not have the most memorable stint at Manchester United after joining from Juventus. After helping the Red Devils win two trophies in his first season under Jose Mourinho – things escalated downward very quickly.
Pogba could not inspire his side to any other trophy from the start of the 2017/18 season to the end of 2021/22.
There were accusations that he was not determined enough to lead the Red Devils to victory and the burden of a £90m+ transfer fee haunted him all through his stint.
Who called Paul Pogba a virus?
In his first years at Old Trafford, the Frenchman was troubled by injury problems and only made 27 appearances last season.
Those same injury issues only grew worse once he left United after running down his contract last summer and rejoined Juventus – hoping to rediscover his glory days in Italy.
Pogba’s knee issues became unbearable after he joined the Bianconeri.
He had to force through a few procedures that held him back from playing for Juventus. The French midfielder had to even miss the Qatar World Cup due to an injury and had to sit at home and watch the France side go all the way to the final before losing to Argentina.
The 29-year-old’s recovery from his knee injury took much longer than expected and fans were starting to grow weary of him.
Some United fans were delighted to have offloaded a player many termed as ‘a virus’ – repeating the words that Jose Mourinho had reportedly infamously termed him as towards the end of his stint at Old Trafford.
Even Bein Sports presenter Richard Keys echoed the same sentiments last year –
I doubt there’s anything in the Pogmentary that will persuade me that Pogba isn’t a virus & United are well rid of him. £300,000/week – nothing? Didn’t feel loved? Please. Mourinho told me about his rows & there’s only one side to take.
Despite the critics believing that Pogba doesn’t work hard enough, isn’t passionate enough and is the root cause of the majority of United’s issues in recent years – his ex-teammates at the club definitely don’t seem to have the same kind of opinion.
Pogba finally made his Juventus second debut in their 4-2 win over rivals Torino on Tuesday.
It marked his first outing for them almost eight months after joining the club. The Frenchman came off the second to play around 22 minutes in the second half and received a warm reception from the Juventus faithful – who still seem to love him for his contributions to Old Lady’s success in the past.
It also appears that the majority of the United squad are delighted for him to get back from a tough period.
In Pogba’s post on Instagram in which he celebrated his return to action, a number of the Manchester club’s players posted supportive messages.
The likes of Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho, Harry Maguire and Anthony Elanga all displayed their love for him and how happy they were to see him back.
Even Jesse Lingard, Pogba’s brother-in-arms since their days at the United academy, wrote of his happiness for the Frenchman.
But it’s not like this is a one-sided love or that Pogba has completely forgotten about his United colleagues.
The Frenchman took time to like the pictures of every Manchester United player celebrating the Carabao Cup title win on Instagram after the Newcastle United game.
Some fans, who are more sympathetic for the French midfielder and still love him, are displaying their love for the brilliant bromance he shares with his ex-teammates and wondering what could’ve been had he stayed on to play under Erik ten Hag this season.
The things Erik Ten Hag with Pogba would’ve been unimaginable. Pogba really left United at the wrong time. pic.twitter.com/6oU9k5fBNR
Pogba is now back in action and will be focused on giving his utmost for Juventus as the Bianconeri aim to bounce back from the Serie A point deduction and redeem themselves by securing a Serie A top-4 finish.
