Paul Pogba, a midfielder for Juventus, was subjected to a maximum four-year ban by Italian anti-doping prosecutors following his positive testosterone test in 2018.

Pogba declined to enter into a plea agreement with Italy’s anti-doping agency, so the matter will go before the anti-doping court there.

According to the World Anti-Doping Code, athletes are usually banned for four years, but their sentences can be shortened if they can show that their doping was unintentional, if contamination caused the positive test, or if they offer the authorities “substantial assistance.”

 

Pogba’s initial positive test was announced in September, stemming from an exam that was carried out after Juventus’ game at Udinese on Aug. 20. Pogba did not play in the Serie A match but was on Juventus’ bench.

Pogba has made no public comments on the case.

 

“Humanely, I’m sorry for Paul,” Juventus coach Massimiliano Allegri said in October.

 

The doping case is another negative note for a player who has been bothered by injuries ever since re-joining Juventus from Manchester United in July 2022. He was ruled out of France’s run to the World Cup final last year due to a knee injury. He played in only six Serie A matches for Juventus last season and two this season.

 

There has also been a police investigation ongoing in France into allegations that Pogba was targeted by extortionists — including by his older brother Mathias, who has denied any wrongdoing.

 

Pogba scored for France in the 4-2 win over Croatia in the 2018 World Cup final. He played in 178 matches for Juventus from 2012-16.