Breaking Down How Juventus Can Get Consistent Quality from Paul Pogba

Juventus' Paul Pogba is one of the most talked-about players in the game.

For the last two seasons, rumors have broken seemingly every week about when Pogba will leave Turin and where he will wind up. Given his immense talent and the fact that his agent is Mino Raiola, it's almost taken for granted that he will eventually be on his way.

These are reports that Juventus sporting director Giuseppe Marotta has continually denied over the years. Just last week, he told Sky Sports that the player had "told us about his intention to stay with us. All the conditions are there for him to continue with Juventus for the upcoming years."

A stay in Turin is entirely possible. Pogba is the kind of player who is wilful enough to overrule Raiola—who does work for him, after all—and stay where he wants to stay.

Juventus promised him the chance to emerge after being buried in the depth chart by Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United, something he won't soon forget.

If he does stay, the Bianconeri are going to have to think hard about how to get his best on the field on a consistent basis. For all his immense skill, Pogba has dropped out of games enough times that it can be a cause of concern.

In order to be sure he stays consistent, the Bianconeri should keep him surrounded with a quality midfield.

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That was clearer than ever at the beginning of the season. Until this year, he had always been insulated to a degree by the presence of Claudio Marchisio, Arturo Vidal and Andrea Pirlo in Juve's midfield.

There was so much quality there that he was able to play his game with little to no pressure on himself. There was the occasional lapse in his play, but for the most part he shone.

But that changed this year. Vidal and Pirlo left in the summer for Bayern Munich and NYCFC, respectively. His presumed midfield partners, Marchisio and new arrival Sami Khedira, both suffered preseason injuries that kept them out until October.

That thrust Pogba into a leading role for the first time in his career.

He wasn't quite ready for it. He put far too much pressure on himself, and his play suffered. He was trying to score three goals with one kick—a problem that was exacerbated by Juve's early-season struggles.

The return of Marchisio and Khedira has helped, but Pogba still succumbs on occasion to his two biggest problems. The first is his tendency to look for the Hollywood ball when a simpler pass would be a better option to keep the attack going. The second is his occasional disappearing act.

These issues dovetail with each other.

Ahead of the second leg of Juve's UEFA Champions League round-of-16 tie against Bayern Munich, his Juve and national team-mate Patrice Evra opined that his problem was that he is too aware of his talent, and because of that, he allows himself to get frustrated if he makes a mistake.

Evra's analysis is fairly spot on. Pogba sometimes puts so much pressure on himself to make things happen that he tries to force things.

He's more than capable of making incredible plays like the assists he's made against Borussia Monchengladbach or Torino, or any of his growing list of long-range goals that fans have affectionately dubbed "Pog-booms," as a matter of course.

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But because he can do it, he sometimes tries to do it at the wrong times. Those attempts sometimes fail, and if it starts happening consistently, he can get frustrated and drop out of games.

Coach Massimiliano Allegri said it best when he told Sky Sport Italia (h/t ESPN FC) after Juve's 2-0 win over Atalanta that the Frenchman "can make the difference if he plays it simple and is focused."

At the moment, the best way to get Pogba focused is to surround him with a talented midfield. That means keeping the likes of Marchisio and Khedira fit and on the field. Surrounding him with players who can take the pressure off will allow Pogba to play the way he did in the Derby della Mole last week, when he registered a goal and two assists.

For all of Pogba's quality, it's easy to forget he's still only 23—a bit too young to be relied on for consistent on-field leadership. Eventually, he will gain the maturity that will allow him to dispense with such insulation.

But until then, putting quality leaders like Marchisio and Khedira around him will reduce the pressure on him and allow his full quality to come to the fore on a consistent basis.