Graeme Souness responds to Pogba's jibe: Put your medals on the table
Former Liverpool captain and manager Graeme Souness has asked Paul Pogba to "put his medals on the table", after the Manchester United midfielder claimed he didn't know who the fiery Scot is.
Souness has been one of the most outspoken critics of Pogba since he rejoined United from Juventus for £89 million (S$157.4m), a world-record fee in 2016.
But the 27-year-old Frenchman told the Manchester United podcast that he does not bother with what pundits say.
"I didn't even know who he was, really," Pogba added. "I heard he was a great player and stuff like that. I know the face but (not) the name.
"Like I said, I'm not someone that watches a lot of (punditry). I watch a lot of football, but I don't stay after the game to listen to what they say about why they did this, or why they did that. I like to focus on football."
That jibe prompted former Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher to leap to the defence of his fellow pundit.
"There's been a story about Paul Pogba this morning and the interesting thing about it is we're quite critical of Paul Pogba. But I think when you're a player you've got to be respectful, certainly of certain former players with certain opinions," Carragher said on Sky Sports News yesterday.
BELOW THE BELT
"At times you have to take that criticism on the chin. So, for Pogba to come out and say he'd never heard of Graeme Souness, I thought really was below the belt."
Souness - who won three European Cups and five league titles as a player at Liverpool - was happy to laugh off Pogba's comments.
"I'm happy with that. The oldest saying in football comes to mind: 'Put your medals on the table'. I've got a big table," the former Scottish international told Sky Sports, before moving on to another topic.
While Souness may have won many titles with Liverpool, Pogba is a World Cup winner with France, and has also won four Serie A titles with Juventus.
Pogba's return to Old Trafford has failed to match the expectations of his price tag, despite winning the Europa League and League Cup in his first season under Jose Mourinho.
A bitter fallout with Mourinho followed in the next two seasons, before the Portuguese was sacked in December 2018.
After a brief hot streak when Ole Gunnar Solskjaer took charge, Pogba's time under the Norwegian has been beset by a lack of form and fitness.
However, he still believes the criticism he has received, particularly in his absence this season, is unjustified.
"It's good to hear good stuff instead of bad stuff but, when you play football, you know yourself. It's what your manager and teammates want, the rest is just talk," added Pogba.
"I guess they (the critics) miss me, I don't know? I'm not someone that looks always at Sky Sports News.
"When you know football, you don't need someone to tell you what's happening.
"One day maybe I will meet them and ask them because I really want to know, why?" - AFP
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