Julien Laurens, CorrespondentOct 16, 2024, 02:00 PM ET
Paul Pogba revealed he considered retirement after initially being handed a four-year ban for doping, admitting that he has to be “more careful” after taking a supplement that contained a prohibited substance.
Pogba, 31, saw his ban reduced to 18 months by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on appeal earlier this month, meaning he can return to professional football in March 2025.
Asked by ESPN whether he thought he would ever play again after the first ruling in February, Pogba said: “Yeah, I had many thoughts in my head, I had so many thoughts to even stop playing.
“I’m like: ‘What am I going to do?’ If it’s four years, you start making the maths in your head. … Four years not playing, training — which club is going to want me? Would I be fit and stuff like that, you make a lot of pictures in your head.
“But on the other side, I had faith obviously, and I was positive. I knew I didn’t do anything wrong on purpose, so then thankfully that happened and they reduce it.”
The France midfielder tested positive for DHEA, a substance that raises testosterone levels, in August 2023 after Juventus‘ opening match of the 2023-24 season against Udinese. His last professional appearance came against Empoli on Sept. 3, 2023, before the news of his adverse test result broke.
Pogba added that the saga had made him wiser as a human being.
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Paul Pogba talks his doping ban in first interview
Watch in-full Paul Pogba’s first interview since his 4-year doping ban was reduced to 18 months
“When you sit back and see how things went through my whole life, not only the doping, I’m like yeah, definitely I gained 10 more years, got more experience, more sage, I would say more wise,” he said. “And it made me realise you sometimes have to be more careful of the decision that you take.
“Definitely what I’ve learned is you always triple check because until it happens, everything is fine. … A lot of players have coaches, physios, chefs on their own and that can happen. So for sure the advice I would give everybody is make sure that you have everything on record.
“At the end of the day, obviously I took responsibility for not double checking.”
The 2018 World Cup-winner remained tight-lipped when asked about his club future. His team is in talks with Juventus over a contract termination that would allow him to join a new club next year in preparation for a March return.
“Right now I’m with Juventus, so we don’t know really what’s going on,” Pogba said. “All the parties are talking, lawyers, etc. So I want to know what will happen next.
“But my main focus right now is just to get myself ready. I keep training and everything. Get ready for being able to join a team in January.”
Pogba said he is aware that he will have to re-prove himself if he is to earn a place back in Didier Deschamps’ national team setup and spoke highly of his relationship with the head coach.
“It’s so good to have somebody that is your manager and you can have a good relationship also outside football,” he said. “And this is really rare and that’s why I’m very grateful and appreciate the relation that I have with him.
“We need to respect these players [in the France team], also that they’re here and you have to respect that. And the way I respect that is, for me, training hard to deserve my place because they deserve to be in the position and to play for the national team.
“And there is good players in this position also. It’s always good to hear good positive things, ‘We want you’ and stuff like that. But you have to respect they’re doing well.”
