JUVENTUS will terminate Paul Pogba’s contract after he was hit with a four-year ban from football, according to reports.
The ex-Manchester United star tested positive for banned substance DHEA in August.
Pogba, 30, has not stepped foot on the pitch since September after he was handed a provisional suspension.
The Anti-Doping Prosecutor’s Office have now slapped the midfielder with a four-year ban, meaning he cannot play again until 10 September 2027.
It was reported back in December last year by La Gazzetta dello Sport that Juventus would rip up Pogba’s contract should he be officially found guilty of the offence.
The Frenchman is supposedly on £130,000-a-week in Turin.
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Meanwhile, there has also been suggestions that Pogba could retire from football.
He now plans to appeal the ruling to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne, Switzerland.
A ban can be reduced if he can prove the banned substance was in his system due to contamination or by accident.
In a statement, Pogba said: “I have today been informed of the Tribunale Nazionale Antidoping’s decision and believe that the verdict is incorrect.
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“I am sad, shocked and heartbroken that everything I have built in my professional playing career has been taken away from me.
“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.
“As a consequence of the decision announced today I will appeal this before the Court of Arbitration for Sport.”
Pogba has played just 12 times for Juventus since returning to the club after his six-year spell at Man Utd.
The Red Devils signed him from Juve in a club record £89million deal in 2016.
He went on to win the Europa League and make 225 appearances for United.
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But the 2018 World Cup winner fell out of favour at Old Trafford and left for a return to the Old Lady two years ago.
Juventus have said they have are aware of the ban but are making no official comment.
Pogba’s career
2009 – Paul Pogba joins Manchester United’s academy from Le Havre as a 16-year-old.
2012 – Pogba leaves Old Trafford in a free transfer to Juventus having made just seven appearances for the Red Devils.
2014 – Representing France in his first World Cup, Pogba is named the tournament’s best young player as France bow out in the Quarter-Finals.
2016 – Pogba returns to Man United in Premier League record £89.3m deal after winning four consecutive league titles for Juventus.
2017 – Aged just 24 Pogba lifts both the Europa League and League Cup in his first season back at Man Utd.
2018 – Pogba wins the World Cup with France and scores crucial goal in 4-2 final win over Croatia.
2022 – After making over 225 appearances for Man Utd, Pogba returns to Juventus in another free transfer.
2023 – Pogba is provisionally suspended from professional football in September amid a doping investigation.
2024 – The star is banned for FOUR years after he tested positive for banned substance DHEA, which naturally boosts testosterone production, in August of the previous year
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
