'Pogba doesn't have Messi & Rakitic alongside him' - Man Utd star defended from Barcelona display questions

Paul Pogba is “world class”, says former Manchester United goalkeeper Mark Bosnich, with it wrong to question his performance against Barcelona as he does not have the likes of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Ivan Rakitic alongside him.

The France international underwhelmed many with his display in the first leg of a heavyweight Champions League quarter-final clash with the Blaugrana.

He was unable to make much of an impact in a fixture at Old Trafford which saw United suffer a 1-0 defeat.

Bosnich, though, believes the World Cup winner cannot be expected to thrive against such opposition when lacking the level of support around him that Messi and company boast.

The ex-Red Devils custodian told talkSPORT: “Without being disrespectful, some of the players around Pogba aren’t of the same quality of Rakitic, Suarez or Messi.

“When you come up against some of those really top teams in Europe, you need to have people around you to help make you look good.

“You also need the tactics to be on your side. You need the team set up to make sure you shine and I don’t think that was the case last night.

“Pogba’s a world class player, there’s no doubt. I understand the frustration of people who basically want him to dominate and become the best player on the park.

“That will happen, but when you’re coming up against the best teams in the world, you need a lot of help.”

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Bosnich has also called for a sense of perspective when assessing United as a collective.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, after making a flying start to his reign to earn a three-year contract, has seen his side come unstuck four times in their last five outings.

A Premier League top-four bid and further European progress is now hanging in the balance, but Bosnich believes progress has been made from where the club was heading under Jose Mourinho.

“If you said at Christmas, ‘Man United will be playing Barcelona in the Champions League quarter-final’, everyone would’ve said you were nuts,” added the Australian.

“People shouldn’t get their expectations up too much.

“They came up against a team [Barcelona] which is one of the best in the world and has been for some time, so you’ve got to keep your expectations realistic.”

United are set to be back in domestic action on Saturday when they play host to West Ham.