‘He was offering nothing’ – ‘Pathetic’ Pogba slammed by Shearer

The former England striker says the midfielder is "not fit to lace the boots" of the Old Trafford greats and has also taken a swing at Alexis Sanchez

Former captain Alan Shearer has delivered a damning verdict of Paul Pogba’s recent displays, branding the midfielder as “pathetic” for the performance he produced against West Ham at the weekend.

Pressure mounted on the Red Devils after they slumped to a 3-1 defeat away from home on Saturday, with Pogba replaced after 70 minutes by Fred.

The World Cup winner has made the headlines of late due to an ongoing clash with manager Jose Mourinho, which has seen him stripped of the club’s vice-captaincy amid suggestions that he wishes to leave Old Trafford.

With the atmosphere around the Theatre of Dreams having apparently gone sour, Shearer has taken aim at the 25-year-old.

“He was pathetic again at West Ham and was that bad that Mourinho had to drag him off as he was offering nothing,” Shearer told The Sun.

“Paul Pogba is Manchester United’s record signing. Just take that in for a moment and consider all the great players who have played for this club.

“Despite being a World Cup winner, he cannot lace the boots of those whose names will go down in history at Old Trafford.

“If he is looking to get the manager out then he is doing a much better job of that than playing football, as his team-mates were not much better. And where was Alexis Sanchez?

“This is a player they fought tooth and nail to sign ahead of their big rivals, pipping Pep to his signature. Yet he sums up everything wrong with United.

“He was not even on the bench after a series of poor displays. He has got nowhere near the levels we saw at Arsenal since the move and you have to ask why.”

Shearer believes that it is high time the United players started to take some responsibility for the club’s mid-table position, although he does not think Mourinho is blameless by a long shot.

“A manager of Mourinho’s stature and an incredible CV does not deserve this,” Shearer continued, referring to the players’ attitude.

“Yet is he blameless? What on earth was he doing tactically in the 3-1 defeat at West Ham? Playing a young midfielder in Scott McTominay in a back three with Eric Bailly on the bench.

“If you are trying to make a point about a failure to buy a centre-half in the summer then you do it in better ways than by sacrificing three points.”

United have 10 points through their first seven Premier League matches, in which they have suffered three defeats.

On Tuesday, they face in the .