Manchester United have announced the capture of midfielder Paul Pogba from Juventus on a five-year deal for a world record transfer fee of £89m, pushing the midfielder above Gareth Bale as football’s most expensive player of all time.


Prior to the completion of the deal, United faced criticisms from rival managers and former players over the mind-boggling fee they were willing to pay for the 23-year old. While many arguments were brought forward discrediting the high fee for the player, one which stood out was that “Pogba is not a Cristiano Ronaldo, a Luis Suarez or a Lionnel Messi, who will give a team 50 goals or more per season.” A position which has again brought to the fore “an unfair football bias”.


In 2006, FIFA named Italian Fabio Cannavaro as its best player in the world, a surprise deviation from the norm, where “attacking players” have scooped football’s top individual prize since its inception. And since that year, only three players, Ronaldinho, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionnel Messi, all “attacking players”, have clinched the award, which is now referred to as the Ballon D’Or.


The selection of FIFA somewhat reflects a rather unfair, under-appreciation of other football stars who are either goalkeepers, defenders or central midfielders (Pogba’s playing position).


The list of the top twenty most expensive football players in history is completely dominated by “attacking players”, with David Luiz the only non-attacking player in the group, after PSG paid Chelsea £50m to bring him to France in 2014. This again clearly shows that clubs are only willing to part with record-breaking sums of money for these “attacking players”, even though in the course of the past twenty years, players and goalkeepers who have forever revolutionized football and who have displayed celestial quality on the football pitch, have emerged.


Players such as Fabio Cannavaro, Manuel Neuer, Iker Casillas, Gianluigi Buffon, Carles Puyol, Philipp Lahm, Patrick Vieira, Claude Makelele and a whole lots more.


It’s time for the perception to change and Manchester United together with new boss Jose Mourinho, have surely set a precedence with the capture of Pogba, and with the player only 23-years of age coupled with the enormous potential he possesses, it would be no surprise in a few years time, if he is sitting comfortably at the very top echelon of world football.


And an exciting consequence of Pogba’s record-breaking move to United, would be that young players who aspire to become the best in the world do not have to always to emulate the Ronaldo’s and the Messi’s to achieve that aim. But to simply put in hardwork and determination, and irrespective of the playing position they have chosen, they too will one day make history just like Pogba has done.


Pogba’s transfer fee should not be disregarded with “biased” criticism, but should be appreciated and seen as a whole new stage which has emerged for football to gain a more balanced standing.

http://www.11goals.com.ng/2016/08/why-pogbas-record-breaking-move-makes.html

Pogba is good, very good BT is he worth breaking the transfer record?