The former Red Devils midfielder has named the player he believes will benefit Cristiano Ronaldo.
Owen Hargreaves thinks Paul Pogba’s return will help unlock Cristiano Ronaldo and his fellow Manchester United attackers.
Despite an energetic first-half display in Ralf Rangnick’s first game as interim manager on Sunday, United struggled to break down the Crystal Palace defense. They created several decent chances, but the end product just wasn’t there.
It ultimately came down to Fred to strike a 20-yard effort from Mason Greenwood’s lay-off to seal the Red Devils a 1-0 win.
The Brazilian, and his midfield partner Scott McTominay, earned praise from Rangnick afterward. However, Hargreaves reckons the German will benefit more when Pogba returns from injury.
“If Pogba plays instead of, say, Fred or McTominay and United are playing in one half, then you’ve got another guy that can play a pass into Cristiano Ronaldo,” he told Premier League Productions.
“So I thought they played okay, but Marcus [Rashford] was really quiet today, Bruno [Fernandes] was pretty quiet today.
“The full-backs were a big feature. The squad depth is amazing, it’s really, really good.
“So getting those guys, Varane and Pogba, into the side, United have easily one of the strongest teams in the Premier League, but they need to start playing like it. And I thought today was a decent step towards that.”
United return to action on Wednesday for their final Champions League group-stage match against Young Boys at Old Trafford.
Be sure not to miss out on the latest news about Premier League
Download our brand new App and follow your favorite players, clubs, and much more
