Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba has been provisionally prohibited from playing due to an anti-doping violation.
Pogba tested positive for testosterone after Juve’s 3-0 win against Udinese on August 20, according to Italy’s national anti-doping tribunal (Nado).
Pogba, 30, of France, was an unused substitute but was chosen at random for post-match drug testing.
If found guilty of doping, he could face a two- to four-year ban.
“Juventus Football Club announces that today, September 11, 2023, the footballer Paul Labile Pogba received a precautionary suspension order from the National Anti-Doping Tribunal following the results of tests conducted on August 20, 2023,” the club stated in a statement.
“The club reserves the right to consider the next procedural steps.”
When scientists discovered the illegal substance “non-endogenous testosterone metabolites” and the results were “consistent with the exogenous origin of the target compounds,” Nado claimed Paul had broken anti-doping guidelines.
Testosterone is a hormone that improves athletes’ endurance.
Paul has three days to provide Nado with a counter-analysis of the result.
After his contract at Manchester United expired and he became a free agent in July 2022, Juventus re-signed Pogba on a four-year deal.
Paul’s ongoing injury problems, which forced him to miss last year’s World Cup in Qatar, have hampered his return to Turin.
Pogba has played 51 minutes as a substitute this season in games against Bologna and Empoli.
He played 108 minutes in six Serie A games last season, three brief appearances and one assist in the Europa League, and 11 minutes in the Coppa Italia, for a total of 162 minutes and no goals.
Paul’s injury woes have reappeared lately, with Juventus manager Massimo Allegri claiming the star suffered a slight back issue during his game against Empoli.
