Doping in football? Pogba tested positive for testosterone!

It has been confirmed that French footballer Paul Pogba has been given the heaviest penalty for using banned substances. The four-year sentence for the nearly 30-year-old Juventus midfielder is likely to spell the end of his career.

The information came from an Italian sports court, which accepted a proposal by the local anti-doping authority, for example, reported the daily La Repubblica.

Paul Pogba reacted to the news with a statement:

"I'm disappointed, dismayed and heartbroken to have lost everything I have built up during my professional playing career. Once I am free of legal restrictions, the whole situation will become clear. However, I never intentionally or knowingly used any supplements that violated the anti-doping rules."

"As a professional athlete, I would never take actions that would result in enhancing my performance with banned substances. I have never harmed or cheated my fellow athletes or the fans of any of the teams I have played for or against," he claims.

Pogba tested positive for testosterone in August after a league match against Udinese, although he did not feature in that game. He played two more games for Juventus after the positive finding was made public, but has been suspended since September 11. A control analysis of the B sample then confirmed his guilt in October.

The footballer, who will celebrate his twenty-third birthday on 15 March, refused to accept a plea bargain and, moreover, failed to prove that he had used the substance unintentionally, which would have been the only hope of reducing the length of his suspended sentence. Pogba and his lawyers argued that the elevated testosterone level that led to his positive test was caused by a mistake, likely a dietary supplement prescribed by a friend and also a Miami doctor.

This argument did not hold up in court. Testosterone, a male sex hormone, is classified as an anabolic steroid, which means that its use can lead to an increase in muscle mass and an increase in strength and endurance during extreme physical activities or faster recovery. Pogba has suffered many muscle injuries in the past year. Since his return to Juventus, where he became the highest-paid player, he has played just 161 minutes in his first season alone due to a knee injury, with each minute costing the club 65,000 euros (1.6 million crowns).

His current career ended before it began. Instead of being at the peak of his powers at the moment, he seems to have stagnated for several years. It is remarkable how dramatic a fall the once most expensive footballer on the planet has experienced. Remember his brilliant performance at the 2018 World Cup? He was at his peak then. But while he excelled in his national team, it wasn't the same at club level. After the 2016 European Championship, he returned from Juventus to Manchester United, where he came through the youth teams, for a record €105 million (£3 billion). He did win the League Cup and Europa League in his first season, but his performances fluctuated.

His relationship with then-coach Jose Mourinho deteriorated and Pogba openly admitted to struggling with depression. When his contract expired in June 2022, United were not too keen on him. The second time around, they let him leave for Turin for free.

But he didn't do well in Italy either. His performances were poor and overwhelming. It certainly didn't help that he had to testify against his own brother Mathias in court due to family conflicts, which provided the tabloid media with an interesting story.

His recent legal problems have not helped either. The Gazzetta dello Sport newspaper suggested back in December that Juventus were planning to sack him and could even demand high compensation. When Pogba's suspension expires, it will be almost five years since his last professional game. It is difficult to imagine him ever returning to the world of professional football again. The career of one of the finest midfielders of the last decade is coming to a somewhat dismal end.