MX23RW : Friday, November 8 19:43:23| >> :120:4545:4545:
[monks data]
Attendance: 74,093
Manchester United logo
Champions League | Quarter-Finals
Apr 10, 2019 at 8pm UK
 
Barcelona logo

0-1

FT(HT: 0-1)
Shaw (12' og.)

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer: 'Paul Pogba only focused on Manchester United'

Solskjaer: 'Pogba only focused on Man Utd'
© Reuters
Manchester United manager does not believe the France international midfielder will leave Old Trafford in the summer.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has challenged Paul Pogba to "put his stamp" on Wednesday's Champions League quarter-final against Barcelona after dismissing talk of the mercurial midfielder leaving Manchester United this summer.

Five years on from their last appearance in the last eight of European football's top competition, United play host to the five-time champions in an eagerly-anticipated first leg.

Pogba, as is often the case, has been the subject of much of the pre-match talk, with growing speculation surrounding the World Cup winner's happiness and Old Trafford future.

Barcelona were widely linked to the 26-year-old last summer, and president Josep Maria Bartomeu recently confirmed the club have had a longstanding interest in "one of the stars of the world of football".

Fellow LaLiga giants Real Madrid are being touted as a summer destination for Pogba but Solskjaer expects him to stay at Old Trafford for the foreseeable future.

"Paul is looking forward to tomorrow," the United boss said. "He's a Man United player. He's one of our big performers and on a big stage.

"He knows the game against PSG was not his greatest moment. So, he is only focused on playing well tomorrow against Barcelona and I cannot see him not playing for Man United next season either."

Pogba will be champing at the bit after missing the jaw-dropping last-16 comeback against Paris St Germain following his sending off late in the first leg.

Asked if this is the kind of game where the France midfielder can make his mark, Solskjaer said: "It's not about one player, everyone has to perform at their best level and at Paul's best he can run a game like this, and that's what you expect from him, that he really puts his stamp on a game like this.

"I expect Chris (Smalling) to defend really well but that's his job. Paul's job is to be the creator, and when we win the ball that he drives forward, so I expect him to perform tomorrow."

A big performance is required as the recently-confirmed permanent manager looks to bounce back from a run of three defeats in four matches.

The Norwegian says the comeback against PSG has given the side belief but there are few tougher asks than shackling Lionel Messi.

"Well, what kind of plan can you have to stop one of the best players in the world?" Solskjaer said.

"As Chris (Smalling) says, we're looking forward to it, relishing the opportunity but this season we've played against Juventus and (Cristiano) Ronaldo, PSG with (Kylian) Mbappe.

"We've had Chelsea and (Eden) Hazard. Neymar didn't play against us.

"I think the better an opponent... (Luis) Suarez as well, (Philippe) Coutinho and Messi will keep our defenders on their toes, so let's see how we manage tomorrow."

Solskjaer could have as many as six players unavailable to face Barca if Marcus Rashford and Nemanja Matic fail to return to fitness.

Manchester United Training and Press Conference
Marcus Rashford is touch and go for the clash with Barcelona. (Ian Hodgson/PA)

"We still hope maybe that Nemanja can be ready," Solskjaer said after the defensive midfielder missed Tuesday's session.

"Ander (Herrera is) probably out, but Eric (Bailly) and Antonio (Valencia) are definitely out, yeah. Marcus needed an extra warm up and hopefully, he won't get a reaction.

"He joined parts of it at the end but he couldn't join the boxes, which is the fun part of training, so let's see tomorrow. Hopefully, he'll be ready."

ga('create', 'UA-72310761-1', 'auto', {'name': 'pacontentapi'});
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'referrer', location.origin);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension1', 'By Simon Peach, Press Association Chief Football Writer');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension2', 'b0205e7d-1cae-4633-be65-5e340ee17fc5');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension3', 'paservice:sport,paservice:sport:club-news,paservice:sport:football,paservice:sport:uk,paservice:sport:world');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension6', 'story');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension7', 'composite');
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension8', null);
ga('pacontentapi.set', 'dimension9', 'sport:football');
ga('pacontentapi.send', 'pageview', { 'location': location.href, 'page': (location.pathname + location.search + location.hash), 'title': 'Ole Gunnar Solskjaer urges Paul Pogba to \u2018run the game\u2019 against Barcelona'});

ID:355808: cacheID:355808:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:10305:No Data Analysis info
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Gerard Pique celebrates scoring for Barcelona on March 13, 2019
Read Next:
Pique urges Barcelona to kill off former club Man Utd
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
FT
Bengals
34-35
Ravens
Tables header RHS

League Phase

TeamPWDLPTS
1Liverpool440012
2Sporting Lisbon431010
3Brest431010
4Inter Milan431010
5Monaco431010
6Barcelona43019
7Dortmund43019
8Aston Villa43019
9Atalanta42208
10Juventus42117
11Lille42117
12Man City42117
13Arsenal42117
14B. Leverkusen42117
15Celtic42117
16Dinamo Zagreb42117
17AC Milan42026
18Bayern42026
19Benfica42026
20Feyenoord42026
21Real Madrid42026
22Brugge42026
23Atletico42026
24PSV41215
25Sparta Prague41124
26Stuttgart41124
27PSG41124
28Shakhtar41124
29Girona41033
30Salzburg41033
31Bologna40131
32RB Leipzig40040
33Sturm Graz40040
34Young Boys40040
35Red Star40040
36Slovan Bratislava40040


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!