Paul Pogba, the FIFA World Cup winner with France in 2018, has tested positive for testosterone after Juventus’ match against Udinese on August 20, Italian media reported on Monday.
Interestingly, Pogba has not even taken the field in the game. Though he was named in the squad, he remained on the bench and later, a doping test found traces of testosterone in his sample. The Frenchman will have three days to challenge the decision and will be suspended as a precaution in Juve’s next match against Lazio on September 16.
The 30-year-old will be judged by the national anti-doping tribunal and faces a punishment of two-years if found guilty, which might extend to even four, depending on the intentionality of the offence.
Having started his career at Manchester United, Pogba peaked at Turin in his first spell, where he won four Serie A titles with Juventus and was also nominated for the Ballon d’Or.
In 2016, he returned to Old Trafford as the then most-expensive transfer in football and won the Europa League with the Red Devils. However, injury woes since have seen him suffer less game time as he joined Juventus for a second-spell.
“I want to make them eat their words. … I want to show them I’m not weak. They can talk bad about me. I will never give up,” he told Al Jazeera recently in an interview, talking about his critics.
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