Neville: Pogba Very Average Against Hull

Paul Pogba scored the goal which secured Manchester United's passage to the EFL Cup final - but Phil Neville said his overall performance against Hull was "average".

Jose Mourinho's side lost 2-1 at the KCOM Stadium in Thursday night's semi-final second leg, but will face Southampton at Wembley on February 26 - live on Sky Sports - after clinging on for a 3-2 aggregate win.

World-record signing Pogba poked home a crucial away goal in the 66th-minute, his seventh of the season, but Neville was not impressed with his overall performance.

The former Manchester United defender told Sky Sports: "I thought he was like the rest of the Man United players, I thought he was very average.

"I thought it was a real poor performance from all of the United team. There wasn't really a stand-out player in the United XI today and Pogba was part of that.

"He is going in the right direction. Seven goals from a midfield player and with lots of competitions he could finish the season with 12 or 13 goals.

"That is not a bad return in your first season."

Manchester United could now face eight matches in the Premier League, FA Cup and Europa League before they play in the EFL Cup final on February 26.

Neville believes his former club won't win the Premier League title, but says Champions League qualification is a minimum requirement for the club and that Wembley glory would be a boost for the rest of their season.

"If you win a trophy it's a successful season," he added. "They've got an unbelievable fixture list coming up, playing every two or three days, so how they handle that will determine whether they finish the season really strongly.

"I think the league is a little bit too much, so you look at getting in the Champions League through either finishing in the top four or winning the Europa League. United can more than do that.

"They've got to start by winning the first major trophy in February against Southampton.

"When you watch United now they are 100 per cent going in the right direction. They are playing with a better style, they are playing with more confidence and they've got determination about them.

"They've lost tonight, but qualified for a major final and those players didn't really celebrate at the end of the game.

"That shows how far they've come. The standard has been risen at that football club back to where it should be."

Credit: Skysports.com