Jose Mourinho reveals why he stripped Paul Pogba of vice captaincy

Posted Saturday, September 29, 2018 by Express.co.uk

JOSE MOURINHO has revealed why he decided to strip Paul Pogba of the vice captaincy at Manchester United.

The Portuguese manager told the Frenchman he would never captain the Red Devils again before the midweek defeat to Derby County in the Carabao Cup.

And he labelled star midfielder Pogba as ‘just a player and not a captain’ when explaining the reasons for his decision.

Pogba did not feature in the surprise loss to the Championship side at Old Trafford, but will return to the fold for tomorrow’s trip to West Ham United.

And Mourinho confirmed in his pre-match press conference that the reason to strip the club’s record signing of the vice-captaincy came off the back of detailed discussions with his coaching staff.

These discussions took into account analysis of the 25-year-old's performances on the three occasions he donned the armband.

“I explain very detailed to the people that has to know in detail, which is the squad and especially Paul, so Paul and the other players in the squad know in detail the reason why myself and my coaching staff, we decide to do that,” said Mourinho.

“I always analyse a player as a player when a player is captain, I analyse the player by the player and captain perspective, and after weeks of analysing and changing opinions with my coaching staff, we made the decision Paul is just a a player and not a captain.”

Mourinho has publicly criticised a number of his first-team players - with Marcus Rashford also allegedly receiving a dressing down following United’s opening Champions League group stage win against Young Boys.

And the United chief poured water on further questions regarding his decision, citing ‘it’s the end of the story’.

“Decision-made, I informed the player and the players and when I was asked after the match on Tuesday, I confirmed and now I confirm and now it's the end of the story,” said Mourinho.

“I can anticipate more questions by saying the relation of player and manager is good, is not anymore a relation, captain or whether the captain's manager, the relation is good.

“But nobody trained better than Paul Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday, nobody trained better than him, some trained as well, and tomorrow he plays, so end of the story.”

Pogba has been linked with a move away from Old Trafford for much of this season, with Barcelona credited with an interest in his signature.

Speaking to Sky Sports Germany before France’s game with Germany in Munich earlier this month, Pogba said: “There was a lot of talk about it [a transfer] but it was like that. I am under contract at Manchester [United].

“My future right now is with Manchester. I have a contract. Currently, I play there, but who knows what will happen in the next couple of months.”

He added of his relationship with Mourinho: “We have a coach-player relationship, it’s like that.

“One thing I can promise: I will always give it 100 per cent, regardless for which coach. I give it my all for United always. That’s all I can say.”