Paul Pogba's Euro 2020
Euro 2020 has seen Paul Pogba in eye-catching form. But, despite his best efforts, his team, France, were knocked out by Switzerland in the Round of 16 on penalties. The Swiss, having first taken the lead, and then having gone down 3-1, scored two late goals to take the tie to extra-time and then to a shootout. It was the sort of game that only tournament football can produce. But it was also a game that France, given the quality of their squad, had no business losing.
For large parts of the second half, it seemed like France had done enough to wrest the initiative back. Pogba’s contributions during that period were stellar. He was involved in the moves leading up to the opening two goals, both scored by Karim Benzema, and he also set up two gilt-edged chances that Kylian Mbappe spurned. Pogba’s influence didn’t come as much of a surprise. His passing, in the group-stages, had been exceptional, both in threading balls through the lines in the final third of the pitch and in making more raking, diagonal passes to the wings. But his finest moment came with about 15 minutes left on the clock, when the ball fell to him near the edge of the box. He knew instantly what he had to do. He took a little touch to move the ball to his right, and he proceeded to curl a majestic, unstoppable strike into the top corner of the goal.
At the end of the game many pundits seemed to wonder why Pogba couldn’t play at the same level for his club, Manchester United. It’s a question that makes at least two lazy assumptions. First, it disregards the fact that Pogba went into the Euros on the back of a fine season. He was often very good for Man United, and every time he was missing through injury, his absence was felt.
The question makes a second and even more egregious assumption. Pogba performs a distinctly different role for United than he does for France. For his club, he either plays as part of a two-man pivot in midfield, usually alongside Fred or Scott Mctominay, or in an advanced midfield role in one or the other of the wings. Wherever he plays, there are clearly demarcated tactical instructions that he must adhere to.
For France, on the other hand, Pogba is deployed in a virtually free role. He can rove around to find space. In club football, even against seemingly less-talented opposition, it’s hard to find a job of this kind. This is because, for instance, advanced midfielders in Europe’s top leagues will rarely be afforded the time and space that Pogba was yesterday when he took the shot on for the third goal.
Over the last 20 years, European club football has been built on varying models of defensive pressing. Beating those presses demands that midfielders operate in constricted spaces; it’s something that Pogba is no doubt adept at, but it’s also something that will scarcely allow him to function with the kind of freedom that he gets at international tournaments. This doesn’t make him an inferior player at club-level by any means, just a different one.