Romelu Lukaku and Paul Pogba were involved in a ‘dramatic bust-up’ after Manchester United’s win against Southampton over the Frenchman’s missed penalty late in the game.
Pogba, the team’s usual taker, insisted on stepping up even though Lukaku had scored a brace and wanted to complete his hat-trick. According to The Sun, Lukaku was angered as he felt he had supported Pogba during his dispute with former boss Jose Mourinho and would have ceded responsibility if the roles were reversed. United caretaker manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was forced to intervene between the close friends in the dressing room afterwards and calm them down.
Having fallen behind to Yan Valery’s early goal, Andreas Pereira struck a stunning leveller before Lukaku scored his first only for James Ward-Prowse to have seemingly earned his side a draw. Lukaku then grabbed the vital winner with just two minutes remaining, before yet more late drama ensued. A United source told The Sun: ‘It was quite a stern conversation and Romelu was clearly not happy about what Pogba had done. He was quick to remind Paul how much he had helped him when he fell out with Mourinho. It needed Ole to calm the situation down.’
The two players are close friends and Lukaku’s move to United in 2017 was influenced by the presence of Pogba, who moved back to United in 2016. Both have enjoyed an up-turn in form under Solskjaer as United have surged up the Premier League table and back into contention for a top four spot.
