Juventus star Paul Pogba has been suspended from soccer for four years by Italy’s anti-doping body.
Pogba tested positive for testosterone in August and was provisionally suspended while the case played out. A test of his “B” sample in October confirmed the positive result.
“I am sad, shocked and heartbroken that everything I have built in my professional playing career has been taken away from me,” Pogba wrote in a statement on Instagram. “When I am free of legal restrictions the full story will become clear, but I have never knowingly or deliberately taken any supplements that violate anti-doping regulations.
“As a professional athlete I would never do anything to enhance my performance by using banned substances and have never disrespected or cheated fellow athletes and supporters of any of the teams I have played for, or against.”
The 30-year-old said he will appeal the decision to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The four-year ban includes time he already served under the provisional suspension, but unless his appeal is successful, he will not be eligible to return to the pitch until he is 34.
Pogba, who won the 2018 World Cup with France, was at one point one of the best midfielders in the world. He won four consecutive Serie A championships with Juventus from 2013 to ’16 before moving to Manchester United for what was at the time a world record transfer fee ($116 million). He returned to Juventus in ’22 on a free transfer.
Pogba has struggled with injuries in recent years, playing only 10 games for Juve in all competitions last season. Surgery for a torn meniscus in his knee also kept him out of the French squad at the 2022 World Cup.
