Graeme Souness takes Paul Pogba stance with Kobbie Mainoo as he repeats criticism

Graeme Souness' gripes with Paul Pogba seemed to rumble on for years - and now he's delivered similar criticism to Kobbie Mainoo.

Manchester United 's teenage sensation made his debut less than a year ago but has enjoyed a rapid rise, featuring in England's Euro campaign and scoring in the final of the FA Cup as the Red Devils claimed the trophy at Wembley.

Huge plaudits have come his way as he's defied his age and experience to influence games from the middle of the pitch. Mainoo started several games at this summer's Euros, including the final, but for the first time in his career has come in for criticism for his displays.

The United youngster was unable to help the Three Lions wrestle back control in some of their games this summer, notably in the final when the Spanish midfield dominated the contest in Berlin.

At such a tender age Mainoo has plenty still to learn but Souness has delivered him a reality check by admitting, off the ball, he seems to lack an awareness and portrays an element of naivety.

Naive Mainoo

He said on the Up Front podcast : "I think he’s really good on the ball, he’s very talented on the ball, but he doesn’t fully understand the position. He wanders, he empties the middle of the field too readily. I watched him against Iceland [in England’s final Euro 2024 warm-up game] and he was getting thrown to the left and thrown to the right.

"He came on as a substitute when holding onto a 1-0 lead [in the Euro 2024 opener against Serbia] and the first thing he did was chase down the goalkeeper and try to put him under pressure. It’s naivety, he’s still learning the game."

Kobbie Mainoo is playing for England less than a year after making his professional debut
(Image: Stu Forster/Getty Images)

Few expect Mainoo to be the finished article and his exploits thus far, particularly in Manchester, have marked him out as a generational talent and those at Old Trafford are ready to sit down and offer the teenager a new deal to tie him down long-term.

Pogba-like criticism

Another man those in Manchester thought was a future star was Pogba. They had the Frenchman as a teenager, before seeing him leave for Juventus. They believed so much in his talent though that they spent a club-record fee of £89million to bring him back in the summer of 2016.

Pogba's time at Old Trafford, which spanned six seasons, was categorised by moments of brilliance in a spell that ultimately failed to deliver as inconsistencies hampered the Frenchman.

Paul Pogba endured a frustrating period in Manchester
(Image: Getty Images)

Souness was among his most vocal of critics - with some of those now echoing what he's said about Mainoo. He previously commented on Pogba: "He has super individual ability - there is much to admire about his technique when he is on the ball and his general athleticism.

"But if I am playing today I want to play against him because he is never where he should be when I am in possession. The criticism I have is that he doesn't understand the role when not in possession. I don't see any changes in his play from the day he arrived to now. With all his attributes he should be a bigger goal threat."

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