Paul Pogba’s four-year drug ban has been reduced to 18 months following a successful appeal at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
Pogba, who was tested positive for dehydroepiandrosterone in the first game of the 2023/24 season, was declared free to start playing for Juventus again from March next year.
Recall that the former Manchester United forward, got suspended by Italy’s national anti-doping tribunal (Nado) in February after a drugs test found elevated levels of testosterone – a hormone that increases endurance in his system.
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Cas director general Matthieu Reeb confirmed to Reuters on Friday that the ban had been reduced to 18 months from 11 September, 2023.
Also confirming the development in a post shared via his X page on Friday night, popular transfer window journalist, Romano Fabrizio, said that Pogba can now continue to train with the Italia giant, Juventus.
He said: “Paul Pogba will be back to action in 2025, confirmed! His 4 year drug ban has been reduced to just 18 months, as @MailSport reported.
“Pogba can start training with Juventus in January and then he will be allowed to play official matches by March.”
Meanwhile, the France international, while expressing his pleasure after the court’s ruling, Pogba, in a statement released to the public, said that the nightmare is over.
He said: “Finally the nightmare is over. I can look forward to the day when I can follow my dreams again.
“I always stated that I never knowingly breached World Anti-Doping Agency regulations when I took a nutritional supplement prescribed to me by a doctor, which does not affect or enhance the performance of male athletes.
“I play with integrity and, although I must accept that this is a strict liability offence, I want to place on record my thanks to the Court of Arbitration for Sport’s judges who heard my explanation.
“This has been a hugely distressing period in my life because everything I have worked so hard for has been put on hold.”
