Since the announcement of the four-year suspension handed down to him by the Italian anti-doping court this Thursday afternoon, Paul Pogba has been able to alleviate his sentence by noting the wave of messages of support he has received. A certain number of players, former teammates or not of the “Pioche” did so via social networks, where Pogba communicated at the beginning of the afternoon, and to these is added that of Didier Deschamps.
In a press release, the Blues coach assured that he “does not imagine for a single moment that Paul had the intention, the desire to take drugs”. “To know him well, I know that this is not at all in his state of mind,” he says. Now there are the facts and what the two samples taken reveal. The presence of the illicit hormone is indisputable. The problem is there and Paul will have to lead a new fight to defend himself, before the Court of Arbitration for Sport and convince the judges that he did not knowingly take prohibited products. »
“What Paul has been experiencing for several months is extremely hard”
Beyond the facts, “DD” expressed deep compassion towards the man who has been his player since 2013 with the Blues, who has been going through hell sportingly and extra-sportingly for two years. “Like the sentence handed down this Thursday by the Italian Anti-Doping Court, what Paul has been going through for several months is extremely hard and I obviously cannot remain indifferent to his sentence, given everything he has achieved in selection and the relationships we have established in the French team. Her situation saddens me and I sincerely hope that she can get better. In any case, I want to believe it. »
Coach of the Blues, already when Pogba started in the Blues, Deschamps used the midfielder 91 times in nine years, making him the fifth player most selected by the former OM coach. Pogba has, due to injuries and his suspension, not been called up to the French team since the end of March 2022, almost two years.
