French national soccer player Paul Pogba is threatened with the end of his career after his positive doping test. The responsible Italian anti-doping public prosecutor’s office applied for a four-year ban against the 30-year-old Juventus midfielder on Thursday. Pogba tested positive for testosterone in August after a Serie A game between Juve and Udinese Calcio. The B sample confirmed the result.
It has been temporarily closed since the beginning of September. Pogba has since admitted that he had taken a food supplement whose package leaflet mentioned performance-enhancing substances. The “Gazzetta dello Sport” reported on the violation that the midfielder was under the medical supervision of a US specialist who prescribed him a supplement containing testosterone. Pogba took the drug without consulting the Juventus doctors beforehand.
The paper had also reported that Juve was planning to terminate his contract; in the event of a ban lasting more than a year, the club could even demand high compensation from him.
The 81-time French international Pogba, a mainstay of France’s World Cup triumph in Russia in 2018, has been under contract with the Italian record champions again since last year, for whom he played from 2012 to 2016. In fact, it has only been used occasionally since then. He also only sat on the bench in the game against Udine. Pogba was under contract with English record champions Manchester United for six years.
Julius Müller-Meiningen, Rome Published/Updated: Recommendations: 1 Published/Updated: Recommendations: 3 Published/Updated: Recommendations: 2
It is still unclear when the decision on the ban will be made. The confession could possibly have a mitigating effect on the punishment. Pogba’s lawyers also argue that the Juventus player lacked intent. According to a report in Gazzetta dello Sport, the sentence could be reduced from four to two years.
