"Messi or no Messi, I don't give the f---I'm not going home tonight."
Watch the scene: France is about to play Argentina in the last 16 of the 2018 World Cup in Russia. It's June 30th, and Paul Pogba decided to speak louder than ever. In the dressing room of the Kazan Arena, the Manchester United midfielder booed his team by shouting words of encouragement, before that line about Lionel Messi. The rest is certainly history for Les Blaes, who went on to win the competition, and for Pogba, whose position really changed that day.
Prior to that competition, Pogba was one of France's key players, but from that day on, he became one of its leaders. He continued in that role during the rest of the World Cup and through wild celebrations as he claimed his second win; Since then, his leadership has gone from strength to strength. At Euro 2020, with a Group F game vs Portugal coming up He's showing he's now "Pogboss," the French team's guide.
He is no longer just as "important" as he was in his early years at the international level; At that time, he was tasked with choosing music, telling jokes, and making fun of his peers. He was loud and positive, always bringing the party atmosphere to the national team camps, even arranging winning chants in the dressing room after a win. These days, that's too much.
These days, for example, Pogba is the one who stepped in at the last minute to hold a press conference touting the incident between Kylian Mbappe and Olivier Giroud - the latter being good in an ex-Euro friendly. Were disappointed at not getting scoring chances vs Bulgaria, which propelled PSG. (It also worked out; when asked about the tension in the team, Pogba calmly replied "No, only the back and legs are tense... Maybe what was said was misinterpreted. "
Pogba is the one who sends Didier Deschamps to speak to players personally, whether to boost their confidence, do something right or discuss strategy, as he recently did with Mbappe on his defensive duties was. He is also the closest player to defender Clement Lenglet when the team celebrated his birthday last week, and has been ruled out of the rest of the Euro after Ousmane Dembele bid adieu to him after a thigh injury.
"I love talking face-to-face with boys. I like saying to boys 'How are you feeling? If you don't think we should do that, let me know...' I would try to make I [my teammates] feel comfortable so that we can get better on the pitch. I want to get the best out of everyone," Pogba explained in a recent interview with the French newspaper L'Equipe.
In any team, regardless of the level, it is always the players and staff who delegate such leadership to a member of the team. There was no doubt that Pogba would be recognized by all crew as a leader, but he still had to accept that label and be good both on and off the pitch.
"You saw how he evolved into this role, game after game, month after month, but he was always in it," a source in the France camp told ESPN. "Pogba was always a captain, in every age group. Even at Manchester United, he wore armbands under Jose Mourinho and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. It's natural for him to be a leader as well as an outstanding one."
That's why he talks more than ever these days: in hotels, in the dressing room, on the pitch, collectively, individually, about strategy, about life, about the NBA, about everything. . He takes care in finding the right words that inspire or reassure, depending on the context.
Ahead of his first Group F game versus Germany, he urged his teammates to send a message to the rest of the competition with a big win. (He responded, registering a 1-0 victory.) On Saturday, when the Frenchman was stunned by Attila Fiola's goal just before the break in the Budapest heat, he made sure everyone remained calm and composed.
Overall, France was disappointing against Hungary, but Pogba's words helped to keep the French mind focused as he worked his way back into the game. "Don't worry. There's no reason to worry. We're creating chances, we'll score. Let's go," he told his team, while Deschamps looked in the dressing room at half-time.
(Of course, Antoine Griezmann equalized in the second half and kept France on course for the round of 16.)
Deschamps and Pogba are not just a head coach and an important player. There is also an incredibly strong bond between them. They rely on each other indirectly, and Deschamps advises his No. 6 on a lot of choices and decisions, whether it was the decision to recall Karim Benzema, tactical formation from game to game, or even That their starting XI. The opinion of the midfielder - like Hugo Lloris or Raphael Varane, the other two big leaders of the squad - is important and valuable.
After the win against Germany, Pogba had a message for all the families and friends of the players who were together in a stand at the Allianz Arena in Munich. Punching his chest, he told them: "We're going to get this trophy. It's not over. It's only the beginning. We're all in this together."