The Brazil idol has no doubts over the Man Utd midfielder's talent, but believes he must respect his manager in order to reach his full potential
Brazilian football great Ronaldinho has tipped Manchester United's Paul Pogba to win the Ballon d'Or - if he pays attention to manager Jose Mourinho.
The annual prize has become the exclusive property of Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo over the last decade.
Kaka in 2007 was the last man outside of that duo to take the honour, with each player picking up five in the last 10 ceremonies.
But Ronaldinho, who was the 2006 winner after inspiring Barcelona to Champions League glory, believes there is no reason why Pogba cannot pick up his own Ballon d'Or.
"He can win the Ballon d'Or, without a doubt," the former Barca and Milan idol explained to Canal Football Club .
"He is young, talented and he has the ability to play anywhere, he can play in a free role, defensive, as a runner or attacking.
"He has the characteristics of a player who can fill any position, he can make history."
Ronaldinho added, however, that he must respect the will of the 'Special One' - even if that means spending time on the bench.
"He knows the substitutes' bench, like me at Paris Saint-Germain with [former coach Luis] Fernandez. It is not the same, when Mourinho tells you that you're on the bench you have to respect that, the other guy, a little less," he said.
"I think Paul really has a lot to learn from Mourinho, who is one of the best coaches in the world. A coach who has won so many titles should be respected. In my case, it was the opposite."
Ronaldinho was also non-committal on Pogba's future and if he needed a move away: "He is already in a big club and he has everything needed to make history, whether it is this club or another he has to be where he feels happiest."
Ankurverma99
114
not ballondor he is winning Sallon dor ๐๐๐
The-LeoMessi-CULE123
64
Balon D Or.....I thought he will win the Salon D Or!!!!0๐๐๐
TrippleK
60
If a player in the calibre of Ronaldinho recognizes the need for the Coach methods/ Instructions to be respected why is it so hard for these Afers users to accept that the Coach has the final say. Thank you Ronaldinho for this great advice to the young talented Pogba ofcourse the rest is up to Pogba to take or leave. I see Afers users here calling Mourinho all sorts of names and saying the Coach plays him out of position and that shows how misinformed these guys are yet they claim to know it all. No matter how talented you are if you take on fights with your manager because you can adhere to simple instructions you will not succeed. Ronaldinho had to be benched by a coach who didn't win much and how much more a coach like Mourinho who has won it all... Mou deserves to be respected without any questioning.
Major arsenal
45
Not enough goals to win it. Not enough assist to win it. Still hasnโt had year with enough team trophies won, to win it. While he is an impact player and is good enough to be considered for the award, he still hasnโt done enough to be in the top 3 man shortlist let alone win it yet. Hes only 25 (i think) and he can still get better, he needs to add more to his game before he stands a chance to win it. Right now at man u hes trying to hard to do everything and needs to settle his game and work on doing the simple stuff right first, the sublime will follow. 1. Try for 90% pass accuracy overall. This will cut down on his turnovers while allowing his team to remain in possession which could lead to more opportunities for him and his team. 2. More goals/assist. Easy to say hard to achieve, this will come from him focusing on the basics. His raw speed and power are better assets then tricks are most of the time so use it. 3. More impact plays. Which can be achieved by better ball management/ positioning/ timing of his runs. Then he will have a chance to become a great!
Double_G
30
All I know is that he must not leave Manchester United this season I know he has a future at man utd let him continue playing he might win it one day let's seat and watch