Under Alex Ferguson, Manchester United always spent big in the transfer market, breaking records and making statements from the bucolic days of Mark Hughes and Roy Keane. Their relentless quest for success saw them snatch up and inevitably wear down Andy Cole, Jaap Stam, Dwight Yorke, Ruud van Nistelrooy, Juan Sebastian Veron, Rio Ferdinand, and Dimitar Berbatov. And they even splurged once upon a time on Wayne Rooney, who at 18 years old was still but an infant, although in footballing terms already nearing his middle age.
In recent years after Ferguson’s departure, the influx of television money has seen them – like other clubs – pick up the pace. They broke their transfer record twice within months thanks to the signings of Juan Mata and Ángel Di María. But with the squad still sorely lacking and the irascible José Mourinho now in charge, the past summer saw Paul Pogba return to the club for a whopping £89 million, their biggest purchase by some margin and a world record fee.
After a sluggish start to his career with the Red Devils, there is no doubt that the talented Frenchman has found form. Manchester United were on a nine-game winning run heading into Sunday’s home clash versus Liverpool. And while a handball in the 26th minute – which cost his side a penalty and left them trailing by a goal against their bitterest foes – might not sound much like a successful afternoon’s work, it was Pogba’s response to the incident which really proved his worth.
True it brought his team’s winning run to a stuttering halt, Zlatan Ibrahimovic only managing to conjure a late equaliser. But for decades Manchester United fans with a sense of propriety have hungered for a player who wouldn’t respond to even the most brazen foul conduct with incredulous denial and the haranguing of the referee.
Having handled the ball quite needlessly, Pogba accepted the decision and made a thoughtful retreat. Phil Jones always looks ready to blow a gasket, and Wayne Rooney would surely have called the official a ‘fucking cunt’. Ferguson himself wished he could charge down the touchline, Gary Neville probably pontificated from his studio perch, Paul Scholes looked sullen and muttered something obliquely, and from somebody else’s bedroom Ryan Giggs pressed the charge.
Old names and for many football supporters, mixed memories. But as Pogba leads what finally feels like a proper changing of the guard, it turns out that £89 million might not buy you titles, yet it seems at least to afford you a touch of style and a modicum of class.
