Paul Pogba joined Juventus on the loose in July 2022 after his contract with Manchester United expired.
Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba has been provisionally suspended from play after an anti-doping test revealed high levels of checkosterone in his system.
Italy’s National Anti-Doping Tribunal (Nado) said Pogba underwent tests after Juve’s 3-0 win at Udinese on Aug. 20.
The 30-year-old France international, who is not used as an unused substitute, decided by chance to undergo an anti-doping test after the match.
If he is found guilty of doping, he faces a two- to four-year suspension.
Juventus said in a statement: “Juventus Football Club announces that today, 11 September 2023, footballer Paul Labile Pogba has obtained a provisional suspension order from the National Anti-Doping Tribunal following the effects of tests carried out on 20 August 2023.
“The Club reserves the right to take the following procedural steps. “
Pogba’s agent, Rafaela Pimenta, said she was “biding his time and may not have an opinion before the results. “
“What is certain is that Paul Pogba never sought to break a rule,” Pimenta added.
Nado said Pogba had violated anti-doping rules by locating the banned substance as “non-endogenous metabolites of testosterone” and that the effects were “consistent with the exogenous origin of the target compounds. “
Testosterone is a hormone that increases the endurance of athletes.
Pogba has 3 days to make a counter-analysis of Nado’s result.
Juventus re-signed Pogba to a four-year contract in July 2022 after he terminated his contract with Manchester United and left as a free agent.
However, Pogba’s return to Turin has been hampered by lingering injury problems that also caused him to miss last year’s World Cup in Qatar.
Pogba has played a total of 51 minutes as a substitute this season in games with Bologna and Empoli.
Last season, he played 108 minutes in six Serie A matches, three brief appearances and one assist in the Europa League, and 11 minutes in the Coppa Italia, a total of 162 minutes and no goals.
Pogba’s injury problems have resurfaced recently, with Juventus coach Massimo Allegri claiming the player suffered a slight back problem after facing Empoli.
© 2024 BBC. The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. Read about our approach to external linking.