The long-awaited deal in the sport’s history has eventually been finalized as the 23-year-old French midfielder Paul Pogba has returned to the red half of Manchester, Manchester United.
According to BBC, the Devils will pay Juventus 105m euros for Pogba, plus 5m euros (£4.5m) in performance-related bonuses and other costs, including 5m euros if Pogba signs a new contract. The fee has surpassed the previous record of the sport, i.e., a £85m move of Gareth Bale to Real Madrid. The manager, Jose Mourinho, previously stated that he would be making four signings this term and with the arrival of Paul Pogba, his task has been concluded.
On the other hand, we have the London club Arsenal, who so far have taken very cautious steps in terms of the Transfers. Their manager, Arsene Wenger has so far made three signings, namely, Rob Holding, Takuma Asano and a stellar name, Granit Xhaka. This is no secret that the Gunners need to bring the reinforcement especially in the striking area and also due to injury issues, a couple of personnel in defence would do the trick.
Both the clubs have undoubtedly signed world class midfielders, but the major difference between them is the amount they paid. Pogba arrived at the Theatre of Dreams for a world record fee, while Xhaka has completed his move in a deal worth £30m, which has made him Arsenal’s third most expensive signing, but who amongst both has won the war of the Stats last season? Let’s find out:
Pogba vs Xhaka: (Stats, for Pogba and Xhaka, have been taken from Squawka.com)
The first and utmost thing we would like to mention here is the positioning, i.e., Xhaka played the majority of time with Monchengladbach as a defensive midfielder, while Pogba was used at central and sometimes as an attacking midfielder.
Now, for the starters, Pogba made 35 appearances for the Old Lady last term in the Serie A league, while the Swiss superstar made 28 appearances in the Bundesliga. In their number of appearances, the Frenchman bagged eight goals and further assisted 12, while, Xhaka scored three goals and assisted only once, hence, the first round has been named in the favour of Pogba.
Furthermore, when coming to the individual awards, it is again Paul Pogba, who wins the round by a margin as he was named as the man of the match for four times in Serie A last season, while Xhaka was named the same thrice. Talking more tactically; Pogba averaged a shooting accuracy of just 37% and managed a passing accuracy of 83% (completing 1399 passes), while the Swiss star, Granit Xhaka possessed the shooting accuracy of 48% and also, managed a passing accuracy of 85% (completing 1885 passes).
Talking about defending, then it is again the Frenchman, Paul Pogba, who has tasted the victory by a margin as he won 51% of his average duels last term, while Xhaka only managed 49%. But the Swiss did mark his presence in the game as he averaged five defensive actions per game, and Pogba only managed two. And when it comes to the disciplinary aspect, Granit Xhaka needs to work more precisely as he was booked 7 times last season and was sent off thrice, while Pogba was cautioned ten times, but never faced a suspension (red card).
The battle has surely been a fierce one as both the generals have done what they are capable of, looking at the stats it is Paul Pogba, who comes out as victorious.
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