Patrice Evra has hailed Mario Lemina following his amazing display against Tottenham Hotspur for Wolves, insisting he is not surprised by how good a player he is.
Lemina made headlines at the weekend for scoring a 97th-minute winner against Spurs, after Pablo Sarabia had equalised in stunning fashion.
Wolves trailed for most of the game, but showed brilliant character to win 2-1 at Molineux, which was very satisfying after what happened against Sheffield United.
Lemina was the hero for his goal, but his whole performance was excellent.
Wolves fans have just come to expect top displays from the Gabon international these days, and his form at Molineux comes as no surprise to Evra, who dropped by Molineux to watch the star in action…
Patrice Evra says Mario Lemina could be better than Paul Pogba at Juventus at times as he hails Wolves star
Evra actually played with Lemina at Juventus, so he is well-placed to comment on the 30-year-old.
Having seen him in training, Evra is not surprised by how good a player he has turned out to be, even suggesting that he could be better than Paul Pogba at times during his younger days at Juve.
He said (Wolves Express): “I’m not impressed or surprised because I know Mario. At Juventus he deserved to play because (of) the quality, so powerful, the way he drives with the ball, the way he cuts the line. You can’t stop him. For me, it’s normal to see him at that level.
“At Juventus they didn’t give him the chance, back in the day he was like 21 years old. The excuse was that he was young and he was sometimes much better than (Claudio) Marchisio and Paul Pogba.
“Seeing Mario doing well here, I’m not surprised. It’s such a perfect club for him.”
What a player Lemina is
It is fascinating to hear Evra say this about Lemina, and one wonders what might have been for him had Juventus perhaps put a little more faith in him.
The £45,000-a-week star’s path could have been very different, but many Wolves fans will be delighted it has led the player to Molineux, because Lemina is such a brilliant player now.
He did not particularly stand out at Southampton or Fulham, but something has really clicked with him now.
There is a real maturity about him these days, and everyone knows he is one of the leaders in that Wolves dressing room. Journalist Liam keen said earlier this year that he has had a huge impact in the dressing room being a big personality.
Perhaps it is simply a case of Wolves and Lemina being a match made in heaven.