In all likelihood, the French international no longer has a future in high-level football. Unless the duration of his sanction is considerably reduced or he is cleared.
Last Thursday, Paul Pogba was sentenced to four years of suspension by the Italian anti-doping court due to a positive test for testosterone last August. The French international, who will celebrate his 31st birthday on March 15, indicated via his representatives that he would appeal this sanction.
Christophe Jallet is rather pessimistic about the continuation of his career at the highest level. “Four years, it’s going to be complicated to get over it, especially without competition. Over the last two years, he has had a series of setbacks in his personal life and on the field with many injuries. So if we add two years of inactivity, it will be complicated for Paul (Pogba editor’s note). But he has great strength of character so I hope that he will only be two years old and that he will manage to prove his good faith. We must not draw a line under our career. But it’s a shame because it’s a bit like the downfall of the child prodigy”declared the former right-back on Canal+.
Mamadou Sakho jurisprudence
Indeed, if the sanction is confirmed on appeal, Paul Pogba’s career will probably be over. However, the midfielder can have hope based on the Mamadou Sakho case law. Testing positive for a banned product, a fat burner, in March 2016, the central defender was cleared a few months later.
The Juventus Turin coach has reacted to Paul Pogba’s four-year doping ban. “From a human point of view, this saddens me enormously, and especially from a footballing point of view, football is losing an extraordinary player”Massimiliano Allegri said at a press conference.
