Paul Pogba will be back on the pitch this season after signing a two-year contract with AS Monaco.
The 2018 World Cup winner, who last played competitively in September 2023, joins the Ligue 1 club as a free agent following the termination of his Juventus contract in 2024.
His second stint with the Serie A giants was derailed by a positive testosterone test in August 2023, leading to a four-year doping suspension that was later reduced to 18 months, allowing his return in March 2024. However, injuries limited him to just 12 appearances over the past three seasons with the Italian club.
Off the field, Pogba endured a 2022 extortion plot involving his elder brother Mathias, who was sentenced to three years in prison for attempting to extract €13 million from the midfielder.
Despite the setbacks, the France football star has said that he is eager to reclaim his place among football’s elite, and he is confident he will rediscover the form that once made him one of soccer’s brightest stars in the world.
“I am determined to get back on the pitch, mentally ready, physically ready. It’s just a matter of time,” the 32-year-old told French television last weekend.
Pogba’s journey began in Le Havre’s youth system before he joined Manchester United Academy in 2009. After limited first-team action, he moved to Juventus in 2012, where he won four straight Serie A titles (2013 to 2016), as well as two Italian Cups (2015, 2016) and two Italian Supercups (2013, 2015).
His €105 million transfer back to Manchester United in 2016 set a then-world record, but inconsistent form and injuries overshadowed his time there.
A 2022 return to Turin promised a revival, only for the doping saga to stall his progress.
Pogba has scored 11 goals in 91 appearances for the France national team, playing a starring role and scoring in their World Cup final victory over Croatia seven years ago.
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