Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer took a difficult decision during Thursday's Europa League match against Granada when he opted to replace midfielder Paul Pogba at halftime.
Pogba was solid in the first half, assisting Edinson Cavani to give the Red Devils an early lead on their home turf.
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However, he was shown a yellow card in the 17th minute of the game, which irritated the Frenchman.
After a pair of good challenges from the United midfielder, Solskjaer decided to put on Donny van de Beek at halftime, with his team still ahead 3-0 on aggregate.
Pogba voiced his displeasure with the booking and replacement in an interview with BT Sport following United's 2-0 (4-0 agg) victory.
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“Yeah, few tackles, a yellow card, we got a little bit of everything (in the first 45 minutes),” Pogba said.
“I was pleased that we scored in the first half.
Obviously, I had to go.
“It was disappointing that I received a yellow card.
While it was not a yellow card for me, you must consider it.
I believe it was a foul on my behalf.
The most important thing is that we won the game
“I see all the players trying to get me down right after the foul.
[The manager reasoned] It's best that I leave before I get a red card and cause problems for my team.”
Solskjaer spoke with BT Sport and explained why he made the decision.
“Sometimes, Paul needs to win too badly,” said Solskjaer.
“After his yellow card, he went for a lot of tackles, so I said I don't want to change that [him getting sent off], even if he played so well.
“Three games were missed today [due to suspension].”
The season has always been difficult enough.”
Pogba would have been suspended for the first leg of the Europa League semi-final against Roma on April 29 if he had received a red card.
With this in mind, Solskjaer made the correct decision in replacing Pogba, who did not seem to be his normal calm self.
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