We saw “The Pogmentary”: Ten sentences to remember from Paul Pogba’s documentary

A “cartoon” sequence launches each of the five episodes (25 to 30 minutes long) and the virtual Pogba intervenes at other times in the story, to illustrate his life. The editing is modern, in the way of integrating images via tweets for example. Everything is pleasant to watch, with pretty drone shots, actions seen from the stands, cleverly disseminated archives.

Negative point: the chronological common thread is the question of his departure, or not, from Manchester United, between May 2021 and the end of that same year. It thus lacks a final point in the soap opera. The absence of recent elements leaves, moreover, the impression of a temporal ellipsis. This discrepancy is accentuated by the death of Pogba’s agent, Mino Raiola, on April 30. Only the mention “in tribute to Mino” shows that his death is not hidden.

But not everything revolves around the transfer window. The topics covered are numerous. The precarious youth of Paul Pogba, his “American” philosophy, his vision of marketing, the place of his family in his daily life, whether it is the one in which he grew up or the one he founded. We see him making phone calls to Mino Raiola, his future and millions of euros at stake, such as arguing with his wife about the diapers of their two children.

It seems possible to draw some lessons from “The Pogmentary”, provided you take a necessary step back on certain scenes. The “stolen moments” are not really, the documentary not being journalistic. The dive into the life of Paul Pogba is only relative, it is dictated by the image he wishes to reflect, but it is still of interest. Here are ten sentences that we have retained.

Pogba on France-Switzerland:

A fantastic goal. Guilty bullet loss. A powerful shot on goal. A very disappointing outcome. France-Switzerland, it was a whirlwind of emotions for the Blues, ejected from the round of 16 of the last Euro, and particularly for Paul Pogba. He tells his masterpiece, for the 3-1: “It was a very nice goal. The ball goes into the top corner… it’s full of adrenaline, direct (…) I looked to my right, I was looking for my brothers (in the audience).”

Above all, Pogba admits that this break goal led to a relaxation: “We really thought that, there, the match was folded” The result is a reduction of the gap, then an equalizer (3-3) from a ball lost by “La Pioche”. “I hadn’t read the game. I was rushed… and this loss of ball… I was very upset“, ruminates the star of the tricolor midfield, who is still struggling to realize: “No one could have imagined this scenario.”

In this sequence, Pogba also talks about the extension: “We have plenty of chances, we can win this game“. Then the penalty shootout, fatal to the French, during which he insists on taking responsibility. He claims to have wanted to shoot first, to set an example: “I was very confident, I said to myself: ‘either the ball goes in… or the ball goes in with the goalkeeper’“. The ball went in, but the Blues went home.

Griezmann on Benzema’s return to the France national team:

Another moment linked to the Euro. Paul Pogba is eating with his family when he receives a video call from Antoine Griezmann. Their conversation is dated May 18, 2021, the day of the announcement of the 26 French players selected by Didier Deschamps. The two Blues executives discuss the return of Karim Benzema, who leaked to the press a few hours earlier.

Pogba asks Griezmann if Deschamps consulted Hugo Lloris, before making the choice to recall Benzema, excluded from the France team since 2015, mainly for non-sporting reasons. The response of “Grizou”: “I called Hugo [Lloris]he said to me: ‘No, I did not know’, then I called you and you did not know.” The rest of their dialogue reflects their complicity, without delving into this point.

Raiola on the two faces of Pogba:

In this documentary, the relationship of Mino Raiola and Paul Pogba is presented as strong. When Pogba invents a resemblance between “(s)we agent, the terror of the clubs“, and Elvis, it’s in the tone of chambering. But when it comes to entrusting him with the reins of his future, he does not hesitate. And Raiola claims his talent in this area: “I tell Paul: ‘I can’t play football… if I play football and you take care of the business, we’re screwed’.”

But they can on the other hand talk about football, both of them. During a remote discussion, during the summer of 2021, Raiola puts his finger on the two faces of Pogba: “We have to try to make you feel like when you’re with the Blues, because with the Blues you’re a different type of player (…) the real Pogba. While in red (to Manchester United, Editor’s note), there is something blocking you.”

Pogba on negotiations with Manchester United:

It is a Paul Pogba rather decided to leave the Red Devils which takes shape as the episodes progress. In the fourth episode, he questions Raiola, still from Florida during the last summer transfer window: “Did they make a second offer, Manchester United (sic)?” Answer: “They want you to stay, but the offer doesn’t represent that. If they want you to stay, they don’t make that offer…“

“They are bluffers! You say you absolutely want a player, but you offer nothing. I have never seen that“, Plague Pogba. In the fifth episode, he even declares: “The club won’t let me go. When you have one year left on your contract, that means you’re going to be free. If I decide to stay, we can always find a solution. If I decide to leave, no one will be able to say no to me. No one can stop me.”

Raiola on Pogba’s destination:

Leaving, but to go where? “I would love to see him at Paris Saint-Germain. I think that at PSG, it would be the return of the King (in France)”, slips Raiola. Without specifying whether the Parisian club was indeed in the running to enlist the French midfielder. He had four possible destinations at the dawn of the 2021-2022 season, according to his late agent. … who didn’t say which ones.

Pogba on the row with Mourinho:

If Paul Pogba had to name a coach with whom it didn’t work, it would be Mourinho: “He sent a photo of my wife and me, taken by a paparazzi, to Mino (Raiola). I didn’t like it at all” The rest? The technician accuses him of being on vacation, while Pogba is in Miami for his rehabilitation. Hence the conflict: “I said to him: ‘You’re serious, I’m injured, I train three times a day, who do you take me for? I am not the other players.”

Another moment of disagreement, with Sir Alex Ferguson coaching his first Manchester United departure, heading to Juventus in 2012.”I left but the love was still there“, believes Pogba. “It wasn’t the money that led to the breakup, it was the lack of respect, consideration, trust“, says Raiola.

Pogba on his “American” philosophy:

Pogba spends a lot of time in the United States. His interest in this country is highlighted in this series of videos. He explains his attraction to American culture, during an exchange with Blaise Matuidi: “In truth, it is necessary to use its image. The ‘Cain-ris’ (Americans) understood this a long time ago. There is no ‘humble’, all that… you have value, use it, use your image, you created it.”

“I like the American mentality, it’s more mehe presses. I like the delirium of the Americans, how they think.” From there to consider more than a pied-à-terre: “Live in the United States? That might be an idea, yeah“. Very present in the various episodes, his wife testifies, and removes the idea of ​​​​a signing in MLS, at the bend of a sentence: “We are talking about it (…) for his post-career.”

Pogba on his sources of inspiration:

Across the Atlantic, Paul Pogba also enjoys a sport that is more highly rated there than in France: “Basketball is my second favorite sport. (…) In fact, I love everything about basketball, the intensity, the game, the style, the show, the look, the ‘trashtalk’. I have a connection with it all.” The proof in pictures, “La Pioche” admiring his handle and his shoot, in Miami, in the Heat’s infrastructure.

Hence a certain admiration for two of the greatest players in the history of basketball, headliners of the NBA of yesterday and today: “I have role models: Michael Jordan and LeBron James.” Firstly, “sporting level, it’s the best”but not only, in the eyes of Pogba: “They are icons. Whether it’s their ads, their business, what they show off the pitch: I like.”

Pogba and the role of father:

The desire to take advantage ofvery simple times” with his wife and children – “those who make you the happiest in the world” – is a leitmotif of this documentary. The feeling that Pogba wants to be a father and not a star in the eyes of his children transpires from many excerpts, in addition to being made explicit at times. “Football is good, but one day my career will be over and I will always be a dad“, he says in particular.

We see Paul Pogba (28 years old then, 29 years old since) talking about education, distribution of tasks in a couple. He insists on the technological means that allow him to maintain the link with his two sons, from a distance, even if it is not ideal. He sums it up like this:I want my children to be proud of me, to say to themselves that I have done so many things, that I have won a World Cup… and to say to themselves: ‘He was there for us too.’“

Pogba on the death of his father:

At the end of the first episode, Paul Pogba evokes the death of his father, after a long illness, in a striking sequence, illustrated by a moving animation: “It was important for me to take care of him, until the end” A year later, he is world champion. Since then, he has started a family: “ I think if my father were among us, he would be proud of his son“.