Manchester United legend Ryan Giggs believes Manchester United need Paul Pogba back in order to build on Saturday's derby win over Manchester City .
Pogba has been out of action since United's 1-1 draw with Arsenal at the end of September after being sidelined by an ankle injury but is expected to return before the end of the year.
The Frenchman's prolonged absence continued over the weekend as the Red Devils produced an impressive display to beat their local rivals 2-1 at the Etihad Stadium, with goals from Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial enough to secure three points.
It capped off a good week for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer's side following Wednesday's victory over Tottenham and leaves them fifth in the Premier League - just five points outside the top four.
And although Giggs believes his former club will take confidence from good results against the bigger teams in the league, he still thinks that United need Pogba's help in beating more defensive teams.
"It’s huge. The confidence it gives you, that you can produce that performance," he told Premier League Productions .
"All big games you need that concentration and that’s what the players had both defensively and when they won the ball making sure that pass forward was good, the touch was good and then as we’ve seen players flying off and causing City big problems.
"I think we all know United’s record against the big teams when the big teams open up and we can expose on the counter-attack, the next step is breaking teams down.
"And that’s where we have to get Paul Pogba back – he’s the one who can unlock the door.
"Get him back playing well and consistently, that’s the next step."
United have been successful against the league's bigger teams this season, adding their last two victories to previous triumphs over Leicester and Chelsea , and draws with Arsenal and leaders Liverpool .
However, they have struggled to replicate those performances against some weaker teams and have suffered defeats against the likes of West Ham and Newcastle .
"We’ve seen the record, I think every team above United we’re unbeaten," continued Giggs.
"It’s the teams below who make it difficult at Old Trafford where you’ve got to be patient, that’s the next step now.
"But that was a fantastic performance, the best performance I’ve seen for a long time from a United team."
