In an exclusive interview with BoyleSports, Chelsea icon Florent Malouda has given his thoughts on how Monaco are managing fellow Frenchman Paul Pogba
The former France international speaks honestly about French club Strasbourg and why they're effectively playing second fiddle to former club Chelsea and why Liverpool have looked to sign both Isak and Ekitike this summer,
Malouda has also claimed that desperation could get the better of Mbappe in his Champions League dreams.
Paul Pogba
Monaco Taking Time With Pogba
Monaco are right to take their time with Paul Pogba. You can't be out for so long and immediately return to competition. The game is so intense now, and I think they have a transition plan for him to get back into action.
First, he needs to train with the team, as it's been a very long time, and then build himself back up to his top level. For him, the objective isn't just to play; it's to get back to his best form. I believe they have a plan for this.
Strasbourg
Chilwell’s Strasbourg Switch
Chelsea had previously sent many players on loan to partner clubs, like Vitesse Arnhem in the Netherlands. Now, the difference lies in multi-club ownership, allowing clubs to effectively be on both sides of the loan agreement. In France, it’s often debated due to concerns about unfair financial advantages. However, if owners are willing to invest, it can benefit the league. Having said that, Strasbourg won't receive Chelsea's top players; Chelsea's strategy seems to be about developing what they consider the best players or offering exit opportunities, as seen with Ben Chilwell.
Playing in a good league like French Ligue 1 allows players to improve and increase their market value. This is smart from Chelsea's perspective. However, from Strasbourg's point of view, it doesn't seem like the priority is getting results; instead, Strasbourg is used almost like a reserve team. For Strasbourg, success hinges on results. If they're leading the table, everyone will be happy with the strategy. But if they lose a few games, the blame will fall on the players connected to Chelsea. So, it always depends on the performance of those Chelsea-linked players.
Liverpool
Liverpool Changing Strategy
Liverpool have changed their tactics, which I think is necessary in modern football. Initially, their plan was to focus on stadium infrastructure. Now, they seem to be able to invest more, and I believe they've been trying to renew the team, even when they bought Darwin Nunez, perhaps preparing for a post-Mohamed Salah era.
Market prices are high. It seems normal now for ambitious clubs to spend half a billion to improve a team; renewing part of a team can cost half a billion. This creates immense pressure. You cannot afford mistakes at a hundred million pounds, but it's a necessary investment without unbalancing the club in terms of financial fair play.
The question now is, how do you convert this investment into performance? Compared to Manchester City's spending, if you want to compete, it's almost mandatory to be ready to invest heavily in the market. The real question is whether you get the same value back in terms of performance.
Life Without Salah
When you look at Mo Salah, he's always been able to renew himself and find pockets where he could be more effective, even though he always starts from the right. Now there's a kind of transition. There were rumours of him possibly going to Saudi Arabia, so the club is preparing to attract players who can perform at his high level and help the team win trophies. I think it's more about creating connections with those talented new players.
From my experience, when good players bond together, they all perform much better. Liverpool isn't expecting anything else from Mo Salah, I think. They need to bring something different that might free Mo Salah to be more dangerous. You also need players with legs next to him for defensive balance, which is always difficult to achieve in modern football. So for me, I'm happy to see so much talent, so many different profiles. It's more about, and we're talking about leadership, how the new players accept Mo Salah's leadership in terms of attacking roles.
Alexander Isak
“Sad” Isak Ending
It's sad that everyone knew he was going to Liverpool. And I mentioned the price tag is just business, too. So it's sad to see that most of the communication was towards attacking his image and his dedication to Newcastle when he just had one of the best seasons ever for the club.
So, for you to move on and move up, you have to accept as a player that they will attack your legacy. It's kind of strange, but now that it's done, I think Newcastle is happy with the money they got. That was a good investment, good value in terms of goals scored and appearances, and good value in terms of profit made. So it's a good success story.
I don’t think you can question his dedication to Newcastle. But the time was up, and it's just the timing that's strange. It's sad that two English clubs were not able to find an agreement before.
Isak vs Ekitike
Will Alexander Isak impact the development of Hugo Ekitike? Yes, but great players adapt all the time. You have to renew yourself. You have to almost develop a toolbox.
There's always your favourite position, but in modern football, you also have the defensive part of the game where you need to be involved. That doesn't stop you from being at your best level. Especially with young players, that's what's difficult to get: you need to give to the team first. It doesn't matter the position. Then, with the relationship you create with the players around you, you will get the chances to score back because he's a natural goal scorer.
He's a real threat, and he has this experience at PSG with a lot of stars, so he knows how to navigate in a dressing room full of stars. But his main thing is he wants to be on the pitch, he wants to improve his stats, deliver, and answer to the expectations around him.
Hugo Ekitike
Comparing Ekitike With Henry
Does Hugo Ekitike remind me of Thierry Henry? No, I think he has his own style. Comparing him to past players doesn't help him. He's a tall, fast player and a threat in front of goal, capable of making a big difference on his own.
He's not the type of player who depends on a particular style of play; he can make a difference independently. That's what's good about young players like him – they're fearless and confident enough to unbalance any defensive system. So that's a good option to have. The difference is always consistency.
When you mention a player like Frank Lampard, for example, you know he's going to score 20 goals every season, no question. So it's about how a young player with a price tag like this transitions into a world-class player who consistently scores 20-plus goals in the Premier League.”
Can Isak Handle The Fee Better Than Torres?
Will the fee for Alexander Isak impact him? I don't think the transfer fee is an issue, especially for this new generation of players; they are used to these fees. It's not extraordinary. They know there's an expectation. I think for him it's more like going from Newcastle to Liverpool, a team that is used to Champions League football. Now you have to play in the Premier League at your best, and three days later you need to play in the Champions League, and then you need to play with your national team.
So it's a different rhythm of games that you need to digest. For all these elements, you rely on your fitness, your energy, your discipline, and your talent on the pitch, like we say, visible training, invisible training, all this balance. You need to be at 150%. If you are below this, then the competition is huge. The opposition is also huge because every team playing against Liverpool will try to stop him. He's a main threat. So you have to reinvent and adapt yourself.
Kylian Mbappe
Mbappe’s Champions League Desperation
After winning the World Cup at a young age, the Champions League became his personal ambition. Like any player, winning the Champions League is a key goal. A lot of pressure came when he moved from PSG to Real Madrid. He had good numbers last season, but everyone focused on what was missing, especially since PSG won it.
Real Madrid operate on a different dynamic. Winning a trophy like the Champions League depends heavily on the team's strength and balance. It's not about individual performance; it's about building a team strong enough to compete with other strong teams. So, the reference point isn't La Liga, it's about how consistent you can be at a high level to be a team threat. He's not as young as he used to be, but he's clearly chasing this. The question is how he can have a significant impact in the dressing room to lead the team to that trophy.
He's been captain for France and is a very experienced player. I believe he can have a huge impact on the dressing room if he transitions into that kind of leadership where everyone looks up to him. The entire team looks up to him and follows him, ready to go to war with and for him. For me, if that happens in Madrid, it would be very dangerous because Kylian Mbappe would have full confidence with a team ready to give their all, much like Argentina did for Lionel Messi. I think that's perhaps what he's also expecting from this project at Real Madrid.
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