The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Paul Pogba

  • Pogba spotted with same mystery blonde in Miami

    Pogba spotted with same mystery blonde in Miami

     

    Manchester United haven’t put a specific recovery date on Paul Pogba’s return from a hamstring injury, but it seems the midfielder is enjoying himself off the pitch in the meantime.

    Pogba’s recuperation has taken him to Miami and the 24-year-old has been joined by a familiar face to him it seems.

    The France international has been photographed with the same unidentified young lady that he was getting close to during United’s pre-season tour of America in July.

    The reunited duo appeared to be enjoying each other’s company once more as they were seen laughing along Miami Beach where they enjoyed a long brunch.

    Despite being unable to wear the red shirt of United due to injury, Pogba wore the club’s colours out as he dressed head to toe in an adidas outfit that matched part of his dyed hair.

    Meanwhile, his acquaintance was spotted wearing a PP necklace – the footballer’s marketing brand.

    This pre-season the pair were snapped flirting and cuddling during a training session at UCLA’s Drake Stadium.

    Later that evening they were spotted going out for dinner at swanky Hollywood restaurant Tao.

    Pogba is currently out of action for United with a hamstring injury suffered in the first half of last month’s 3-0 win over Basle in the Champions League.

    Speaking prior to their 4-0 Premier League victory over Crystal Palace at the weekend, Red Devils manager Jose Mourinho revealed that the midfielder has joined the club’s ‘long-term’ injury list, adding fears that he could be out until mid-November.

    The Old Trafford outfit has yet to make a decision over whether to send Pogba for surgery – with Saturday’s win over Palace meaning he has now missed their last five matches in all competitions.

    But Mourinho bracketed his £89million record signing with cruciate ligament casualties Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Marcos Rojo among the players who are currently out of his thoughts.

  • Biafra, Democracy Day dominate Google search

    Biafra, Democracy Day dominate Google search

    Nigerians took to Google during the week to know more about Biafra and the history of democracy in Africa’s most populous nation.

    Google’s Spokesman Taiwo Kola-Ogunlade made the announcement in Lagos on Thursday.

    Kola-Ogunlade, who is Google’s Communications and Public Affairs Manager for Anglophone West Africa, said the searches were apparently to know more about Biafra.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that some groups observed a sit-at-home protest on May 30, to commemorate the 50th anniversary since the Biafra uprising ended.

    Kola-Ogunlade said that Nigerians searched for Democracy Day, Biafra News, Biafra Day, Tiger Woods, Ernesto Valverde and Paul Pogba in the search engine.

    According to him, a group, the Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) has rejected May 29 as Nigeria’s Democracy Day, describing it as fraudulent, unrealistic and escapist.

    “The group asked the Federal Government to declare June 12 as Democracy Day instead.

    “May 29 was chosen by the last military regime of Gen. Abdul Salaam Abubakar.

    “Nigerian researched more on the topic on Google search using the terms: ‘when is democracy day in Nigeria.’

    The spokesman said that Nigerians also searched for: “why do we celebrate democracy day in Nigeria.

    “History of democracy day in Nigeria and democracy day 2017”.

    The searches commenced on May 25 and ended on May 31.

    Kola-Ogunlade said there was total shutdown in Nigeria’s South East on May 30, following the Indigenous People of Biafra’s sit-at-home order.

    He said that the order was to mark the 50th anniversary of the declaration of the defunct Republic of Biafra and also to honour heroes and heroines of the liberation struggle.

    The Google chief said that the sit-at-home order was totally complied with in the five states in the South East.

    Kola-Ogunlade explained that people searched Google using terms such as ‘Biafra news today’, ‘Biafra latest news’, ‘radio Biafra news’ and ‘radio Biafra’.

    The spokesman said that Golf superstar, Tiger Woods’ arrest and charge for Driving Under the Influence (DUI) by the police in Florida on May 29 also trended on Google.

    He said that the former golf world number one had to deal with a fresh blow as he struggled to resurrect his career.

    “Nigerians went on Google to search for ‘Tiger Woods net worth’, ‘Tiger Woods arrested’, ‘Tiger Woods news’, ‘DUI’ and ‘Serena Williams’.

    The Google chief said that Barcelona FC President, Josep Bartomeu, on May 29 officially confirmed the appointment of Ernesto Valverde as the club’s new head coach, replacing Luis Enrique.

    Kola-Ogunlade said that sports fanatics Googled ‘Ernesto Valverde profile’, ‘Barcelona’, ‘Who is Ernesto Valverde’ and ‘Barcelona new coach.’

    He also said that Paul Pogba’s visit to Mecca to give thanks for a good season trended on Google.

    “Paul Pogba visited Islam’s holiest city, Mecca this week to pray and offer his appreciation for a successful season with Manchester United and to mark the beginning of Ramadan.

    “Nigerians visited Google to search ‘Paul Pogba religion’, ‘Is Paul pogba a Muslim’, ‘Paul Pogba profile’ and ‘Paul Pogba biography’,” Kola-Ogunlade said.

    Google Trends launched in May, 2006, allows one to see how popular search terms and their demography have been overtime on the search engine.

  • Pogba takes 3 months to pay £100 bill debt

    Pogba takes 3 months to pay £100 bill debt

     

     

     

    Is it possible for Manchester United forward Paul Pogba who takes home £290,000 a year to lack the money to pay a removal man?

    May be you will find it strange, but the 24-year-old player has taken more than three months to cough up £100 to pay a removal van.

    Removal man Kondi Moyo has revealed he wasn’t been paid after he and a friend helped the footballer move into his multi-million pound mansion last year.

    The footballer is already known to drive a hard bargain after knocking £600,000 off the asking price of his Cheshire home.

    He paid £2.9m for the swanky five-bedroom home that was up for sale at £3.49million.

    Pogba saved himself a fortnight’s wages with the cut-price deal – but apparently couldn’t find a £100 to pay Mr Moyo.

    The removal man told The Sun: ‘He might be the most expensive footballer on the planet but he played me like a fool.

    ‘It was an honest morning’s work and completed on the understanding we would be paid at the end of the job.’

    The 44 year old has run Manchester-based removals firm Grey Panther for ten years.

    He was asked to move boxes from storage to the star’s home in Altrincham, Cheshire.

    His management said they had paid by bank transfer on several occasions and vowed to do so again. But on Friday Moyo said it still had not appeared.

  • Injured Pogba to miss Middlesbrough clash

    Injured Pogba to miss Middlesbrough clash

     

     

     

    Paul Pogba will miss Manchester United’s Premier League match against Middlesbrough on Sunday and withdraw from the France squad due to the hamstring injury he suffered against Rostov.

    United manager Jose Mourinho confirmed Pogba will be sidelined after having to be replaced two minutes into the second half of Thursday’s Europa League victory over the Russians.

    Mourinho’s men won 1-0 on the night at Old Trafford to seal a 2-1 aggregate triumph in the last-16 tie, but saw the France midfielder limp off to be replaced by Marouane Fellaini.

    The 24-year-old gestured to his leg and headed straight down the tunnel after sustaining the problem when pressing a Rostov player, applauding the home fans on his way off.

    “Yes, hamstring,” Mourinho said of Pogba’s injury at his post-match media conference.

    “I don’t know for sure how long, but no Middlesbrough and no national team.”

    Pogba had been named in France’s squad to face Luxembourg in World Cup qualifying and Spain in a high-profile friendly for next week’s international break.

    A goal from Juan Mata proved to be enough for United in a tense second leg, with Mourinho impressed by his side’s battling qualities.

    “Our plan was to kill the game when we had energy for that,” he said.

    “We tried to kill it in the first half, we hit the post, the keeper saved, we missed chances. Then they were trying, but my players fought hard.

    “Rostov are a very difficult team to play against because they defend with a block of 10 players. It was difficult for everyone. Atletico Madrid, Bayern, Anderlecht, Ajax, Sparta Prague, Man United – everyone found it difficult to play against them.

    “They are very organised, big discipline, and they can be dangerous on the counter-attack.”

  • EFL Cup: Man United beat Hull City to setup Southampton final

    EFL Cup: Man United beat Hull City to setup Southampton final

    Manchester United have qualified for the final of the EFL Cup final despite falling to a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Hull City in the second leg of their semi-final at the KC Stadium.

    Goals from Tom Huddlestone and Oumar Niasse either side of a Paul Pogba strike saw the Tigers pick up their first win over United since 1974, but it wasn’t enough to overturn the 2-0 deficit from the first leg at Old Trafford as Jose Mourinho’s side won 3-2 on aggregate.

    The opener came from the spot after Jonathan Moss controversially adjudged Rojo to have tugged the shirt of Maguire from a corner, allowing Huddlestone to step up and bury his inch-perfect penalty into the bottom corner.

    However, the Red Devils equaliser came from nothing as Huddlestone’s attempts to track Marcus Rashford down the left channel only saw him divert the ball into a dangerous area, and Pogba reacted quickest to poke his finish into the bottom corner.

    With five minutes remaining the hosts cut the aggregate deficit back to just one goal with a simple finish from Baye Oumar Niasse at the back post after David Meyler had turned Markovic’s diagonal ball back across the six-yard box.

    The game ended with Hull City beating Manchester United 2-1 on the night but they qualified on a 3-2 aggregate and will play Southampton in the final at Wembley.

  • Mourinho has set me free – Pogba

    Mourinho has set me free – Pogba

    Manchester United midfielder, Paul Pogba, said his recent upturn in form has been helped by manager Jose Mourinho letting him “free” on the pitch.

    The France international, 23, started slowly after rejoining United for a £89m world-record fee last summer.

    But he has been instrumental in United’s recent nine-match winning run.

    “He told me not to listen to anybody, just be focused on the pitch and enjoy yourself. That is all I am doing,” Pogba told the BBC’s Football Focus.

    Expectations were high following Pogba’s return to Old Trafford from Italian champions Juventus in August, but it is only in recent weeks that his influence on the team has gradually increased.

    He has scored and assisted a total of five more goals in United’s past 10 games compared to his tally in the club’s first 10 games.

    And Pogba said it is down to the reassurance and guidance given by Mourinho.

    “He talked to me. He made me very comfortable and confident,” said Pogba, who made seven appearances for United before joining Juventus for £1.5m in 2012.

    “He said ‘you know how to play, do what you want’. He let me free on the pitch.

    “He told me just to enjoy myself. That is it. That is all I need to hear from the manager.”

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • Soccer: Pogba faces brother as Man United battle St Etienne

    Soccer: Pogba faces brother as Man United battle St Etienne

    Family ties will be set aside, as Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba could face his brother Florentin after the Jose Mourinho’s side were drawn against St Etienne in the Europa League round of 32, a tie which will also stir memories of the dark days of hooliganism in the 1970s.

    The sides met in the old European Cup Winners’ Cup in 1977-78 but the first leg in St Etienne was marred by violence involving United supporters.

    The English side was kicked out of the competition by UEFA but was reinstated on appeal and ordered to play their home leg outside Manchester, choosing to stage the game in Plymouth in south-west England.

    They won the match 2-0 to go through 3-1 on aggregate.

    Florentin Pogba, a Guinean international, is a defender for St Etienne although he has only been picked
    intermittently this season.

    His brother Paul, who plays for France, joined United from Juventus in the close season for a world record fee.

    Borussia Moenchengladbach and Fiorentina, two of the most familiar names in European club football, will meet for the first time.

    AS Roma, the only other Serie A team left in the competition after Inter Milan and Sassuolo failed to get past the group stage, are involved in another high-profile match against Spain’s Villarreal.

    Israel’s Hapoel Beer Sheva, who beat Inter during the group stage, were rewarded with a tie against Besiktas, one of eight teams parachuting in from the Champions League.

    Two of the other top ties pitted AZ Alkmaar against Olympique Lyonnais and PAOK against Schalke, a repeat of their Champions League playoff tie in 2013-14 which the Bundesliga side edged 4-3 on aggregate.

  • Swansea 1-3 Man United: Red Devils destroy Swans

    Swansea 1-3 Man United: Red Devils destroy Swans

    A brace from Zlatan Ibrahimovic and a goal from Paul Pogba helped Manchester United return to winning ways in the Premier League courtesy of a 3-1 victory over struggling Swansea City at the Liberty Stadium.

    Jose Mourinho made six changes to the side beaten by Fenerbahce in midweek, but the manager was forced to watch on from the stands as he served his one-match touchline ban after being sent off against Burnley last weekend.

    It was one of the five to keep their place that almost gave United a lead after less than two minutes when Wayne Rooney – now just two goals short of Sir Bobby Charlton’s all-time record for the club – curled an early effort narrowly past the far post.

    Paul Pogba broke the deadlock for the visitors before a brace from Zlatan Ibrahimovic sent them into the halfway stage with a deservedly convincing lead, and they held out despite a Mike van der Hoorn consolation to condemn Swansea to a 10th straight Premier League match without a win.

    It is now 10 league games without a win since the opening day of the season for Swansea and just one point from a possible 12 in charge for Bradley ahead of their meeting with Everton after the international break.

    With this win Manchester United have avoid making their worst start to a Premier League campaign courtesy of the victory, climbing up to  sixth in the Premier League table with their first away league win since August.

  • Pogba injured, doubtful for Swansea clash

    Pogba injured, doubtful for Swansea clash

    Football most expensive player Paul Pogba is doubtful for Manchester United’s Premier League trip to Swansea City on Sunday after he limped off during the Europa League game against Fenerbahce.

    The Frenchman seemed to injure his thigh in a tackle with Brazilian midfielder Souza and he expressed his frustration by punching the ground before getting back to his feet.

    Pogba tried to shake off the knock and played on, even managing to create enough space for himself to fashion United’s first shot on target – albeit an effort comfortably saved by Volkan Demirel. However, on the half-hour mark he signalled to the bench that he felt unable to carry on and he was replaced by Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

    With Ander Herrera suspended after his sending-off against Burnley last weekend, the Reds could have some problems in midfield ahead of the return to domestic action. It will therefore be intriguing to see if Jose Mourinho calls on the services of Bastian Schweinsteiger, who has just returned to training with the first-team squad.

    There was no official update on Pogba’s condition before the squad flew home from Istanbul but if he is ruled out for the weekend, he will join existing absentees Eric Bailly, Chris Smalling and Antonio Valencia on the sidelines.

  • Fenerbahce 2–1 Man Utd: Pogba injured as Emenike enjoys win

    Fenerbahce 2–1 Man Utd: Pogba injured as Emenike enjoys win

    Emmanuel Emenike was on the winning side as Turkish giants Fenerbahce defeated Manchester United 2-1 in the Europa Cup match played this evening.

    Senegalese international Moussa Sow gave the visitors the lead inside the first two minutes as he met a delightful cross from Hasan Ali Kaldirim with a sensational overhead kick from just the edge of the box to make it 1-0.

    The Red Devils lost Paul Pogba in the first half as he went down under a heavy challenge from Souza and was replaced by Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

    Fenerbahce won a freekick on the edge of the United box and Lens curled the ball past David de Gea. Jose Mourinho immediately sent on Henrik Mkhitaryan for youngster Marcus Rashford.

    Fenerbahce substitue, Emmanuel Emenike was through on goal just seconds after his introduction from the bench, but the former Nigeria international could not take the ball in his stride and was eventually denied by a mixture of Daley Blind and De Gea.

    Emenike continued to look the most likely on the break as Fenerbahce went in search of a killer third goal, but he was once again kept out by De Gea before falling agonisingly short of tapping home a low cross from Lens at the far post.

    Those missed opportunities almost came back to haunt Dick Advocaat’s side when Rooney drilled a 25-yard piledriver into the top corner with just one minute left of normal time, moving within two goals of Sir Bobby Charlton in United’s all-time goalscoring list and level with Ruud van Nistelrooy as the club’s top scorer in European competition with 38.