Paul Pogba, a Juventus midfielder, has been suspended indefinitely after a drugs test found high amounts of testosterone in his system.
According to Italy’s national anti-doping tribunal (Nado), Pogba was tested for doping following Juventus’ 3-0 win against Udinese on August 20. The 30-year-old France international was chosen at random for post-match drug testing despite being an unused substitute.
He could face a two- to four-year ban if proven guilty of doping.
“Juventus Football Club announces that the footballer Paul Labile Pogba received a precautionary suspension order from the National Anti-Doping Tribunal today, 11 September 2023, following the results of tests conducted on 20 August 2023,” the team said in a statement. “The club reserves the right to reconsider the next procedural steps.”
Rafaela Pimenta, Pogba’s agent, stated that she was “awaiting the second sample and cannot have an opinion until the results.”
“What is certain is that Paul Pogba never wanted to break a rule,” Pimenta continued.
Paul Pogba is suspended
Pogba broke anti-doping rules, according to Nado, when it discovered the illegal substance “non-endogenous testosterone metabolites,” and the results were “consistent with the exogenous origin of the target compounds.”
Testosterone is a hormone that improves athletes’ endurance.
Pogba has three days to provide Nado with a counter-analysis of the result.
Pogba was re-signed by Juventus on a four-year contract in July 2022 after his contract at Manchester United expired and he became a free agent.
However, Pogba’s return to Turin has been marred by ongoing injury issues, which forced him to miss last year’s World Cup in Qatar.
Pogba has played 51 minutes as a substitute in games against Bologna and Empoli this season.
He played 108 minutes in six Serie A games last season, three brief appearances and one assist in the Europa League, and 11 minutes in the Coppa Italia for a total of 162 minutes and no goals.
Pogba’s injury woes reappeared lately, with Juventus manager Massimo Allegri claiming the star suffered a slight back issue during his game against Empoli.
