On Tuesday, former Manchester United midfielder (although can you really call him that?) Paul Pogba celebrated his fourth Serie A title win in four seasons since making the move to Italy.
The young Frenchman is widely considered to be one of the most exciting players in the game today, and even broke into the FIFPro World XI for his influence on Juventus' run to the Champions League final last season as well as of course his regular dominance in the league. So when he says he wants to be remembered as the best midfielder ever, then you have to take him seriously.
And that is exactly what he has said. Pogba is not someone who is afraid to discuss his ambitions, and in a very open interview with 'La Repubblica' he revealed that the idea of Cristiano Ronaldo being a "selfish" player is something he doesn't buy at all:
Being strong lets you help the team. Take Cristiano Ronaldo. He sets himself some incredibly high objectives, he's ambitious, he wants to beat every record, he wants the Ballon D'Or. That's not selfishness.
Pogba then turned attention to his focus, as he explained that four titles in four years is not enough, and that he is constantly striving for more, but when he explained that he wanted to be remembered as the strongest midfielder ever, he dropped a name that took us by surprise somewhat.
It appears that the benchmark for midfield play, at least for Paul Pogba, is former Chelsea man Frank Lampard:
I've only won four Scudetti. They're not enough for me. I've always been like this, people called me crazy but I want to make history and become the strongest midfielder ever.
I'd like to surpass Lampard. I want to be the midfielder who can do everything, and at the highest levels. Shooting, dribbling, scoring, defending. I want to be like Lampard, but better.
While there's no doubt that Lampard was a world class player in his day, surely there are better examples of the all-round midfielder that Pogba is trying to surpass?
Not Paul Scholes? Or Steven Gerrard? We can also think of a few French midfielders who could boast a more complete midfield game than Lampard, but that's the name that came out of Pogba's mouth, and to be fair to him he knows what makes a great midfielder better than we do because, well, he is one.
The stage is set for Paul Pogba to really show the world what he can do in his home country at Euro 2016 this summer, and we're honestly glad that France are not in Ireland's group as their current crop of emerging talent could become a dominant force in Europe over the next few years.
