Mourinho Fighting a Battle with Pogba That Neither of Them Can Win

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Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho and the club’s star player Paul Pogba are waging open PR war against each other.

On the face of it, the indirect verbal skirmishes between the pair in the media represent a clash in egos and ideologies. Pogba wants more attacking football, Mourinho wants more commitment, though the real motivations behind their public back and forth probably aren’t as simplistic as that.

It feels as though the opposing factions have drawn a line in the sand between them and asked fans to choose a side. But instead of picking either Pogba or Mourinho, a large section of United supporters would prefer to throw both in the sea.

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After another frustrating afternoon at Old Trafford against Wolves, Paul Pogba delivered the latest in a series of inflammatory interviews, this time openly lamenting United’s style of play. It was Pogba’s belief that United should “attack, attack, attack” when playing at home, though he conceded he was “not the manager” and that he “cannot say”, even though he had already said an awful lot.

You won’t find many United fans who disagree with assessment, though you’ll find even fewer who agree with how and where he chose to deliver it.

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His words hit the same notes as his interview after United’s narrow victory against Leicester City in the opening game of the Premier League season did. Pogba, who captained United on the night, said:

“There are things and there are things that I cannot say otherwise I will get fined“.

Again, Pogba’s choice of words would have far reaching consequences. If he thought by not expanding on his quote, he was limiting the controversy it would cause, he was very wrong. It doesn’t matter if you violently chuck or softly roll a grenade into a room – the explosion causes the same damage.

Fresh stories emerged claiming that Pogba had been told in no uncertain terms that he would never captain United again. The reports suggested that Mourinho had viewed Pogba’s latest outburst as a complete betrayal of his trust and a rejection of the olive branch he had extended in the Frenchman’s direction.

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