PAUL Pogba’s Juventus career is over after the Serie A club announced on Friday that the France midfielder’s contract had been terminated even though his doping ban was cut to 18 months on appeal.
Pogba will be able to return to competitive football in March after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) chopped last month an initial four-year suspension handed down by the Italian anti-doping authority NADO.
But Juventus have decided to cut ties with the 31-year-old, whose return to Turin from Manchester United in 2022 was ruined by a string of problems on and off the pitch.
In a statement, Juve said that they and Pogba “have reached a mutual agreement for the termination of their contract as of 30 November, 2024”.
His contract had been due to expire in 2026.
“You gave me a lot, more than what I could ever say, and I’ll always keep with me the love you showed me,” said Pogba to Juve fans on social media.
“You’ll always be in my heart. Good luck.”
Pogba had said in October that he was “willing to give up money to be able to play again with Juve”, an appeal which fell on deaf ears at the “Old Lady” of Italian football.
Juve’s announcement is no surprise as both coach Thiago Motta and sporting director Cristiano Giuntoli have both repeatedly referred to Pogba in the past tense, saying that “he was a great player”.
Pogba, a World Cup winner with France in 2018, started just one match after rejoining Juve — with whom he won four Serie A titles between 2012 and 2016 — in the summer of 2022.
He last played for Juve at Empoli in September last year, not long before he was provisionally suspended for testing positive for testosterone.
