Having served an 18-month doping ban, Paul Pogba is set to re-enter professional football with a point to prove and lost time to make up for.
Paul Pogba hasn’t played a match since September 2023. That was the last time the midfielder featured for Juventus before receiving a ban after testing positive for a banned substance – dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA). That ban (cut to 18 months from an initial four years) ended in March and Pogba is getting ready for a comeback.
Widespread reports claim Pogba, who is a free agent after leaving Juve in November, is on the verge of signing for Monaco on a two-year deal. The 32-year-old had interest from Major League Soccer and Saudi Arabia, most notably holding talks with DC United, but has seemingly opted for a return to his homeland where he will play in Ligue 1 next season.
While Pogba came through the youth system at Le Havre, this will be the first time he has played league football in France. That the 32-year-old is joining a Ligue 1 club perhaps says something about how he wants to first restore his reputation at home, possibly even to make a push for France’s 2026 World Cup squad.
Talent has never been an issue for Pogba. At his best, he was one of the most naturally gifted midfielders in the world, persuading Manchester United to pay a world-record transfer fee to re-sign him from Juventus in 2016. At that time, United believed they’d landed a centre piece to build around for the next decade.
Pogba was misunderstood by several Manchester United managers who repeatedly saw him as a midfield anchor when his skill set made him more comfortable as a ball-carrying chaos merchant with the freedom to drive into the final third. It was in this role that Pogba first caught the eye for Juve, back when the Old Lady had Andrea Pirlo and Claudio Marchisio for structure and security.
It’s not guaranteed Pogba will be an automatic starter for Monaco. Adi Hütter favoured a double pivot of Lamine Camara and Denis Zakaria last season with Takumi Minamino afforded the license to roam as a mobile number 10 ahead of the midfield. It’s a system that worked well for the team from the principality.
Hütter set up Monaco to play in quick transition with wide attackers Maghnes Akliouche and Eliesse Ben Seghir the team’s primary creators. The January addition of Mika Biereth who scored 13 goals in just 16 Ligue 1 appearances gave Monaco a sharper cutting edge in front of goal, but there remains a sense that they could be more dynamic in their central play.
This possibly explains why Monaco have targeted Pogba. While it has been a number of years since the midfielder was consistently productive at the elite level of the game, his ball-carrying numbers have always been strong – at Manchester United, Pogba was ranked in the 95th percentile or higher for progressive carries and carries into the final third per 90 minutes.
As he moves further into his 30s, Pogba might have to change his game. He has surely lost some of the physicality that made him so imposing earlier in his career. This would have been the case had Pogba been playing consistently over the last three seasons. It will likely be even more the case considering he’s played just eight league games since 2022.
The Pogba that plays for Monaco next season might be very different to the Pogba that divided opinion during his time at Manchester United or the Pogba who set Serie A alight during his first spell at Juventus. That, however, could be a good thing. This is an opportunity for the Frenchman to start a new phase of his career.
Didier Deschamps knows what Pogba can do. The midfielder’s peak came when he shone at the 2018 World Cup, producing a Man of the Match performance in the final against Croatia. Deschamps didn’t just harness Pogba as a player, but as a leader. With Les Bleus in the midst of a generational transition, Pogba could have something to offer as a dressing rom figure.
To be of any use to France at the 2026 World Cup, though, Pogba must prove himself for Monaco first. The 32-year-old will have a platform in the Champions League after Hütter’s team finished third in the Ligue 1 table last season, one place lower than the season before when Monaco finished second to Paris Saint-Germain. Pogba is joining a strong outfit.
No matter what happens, Pogba’s career will be defined by his unfulfilled potential. He was meant to be one of the best players in the world and while the midfielder is a World Cup winner, he never scaled such heights and he is unlikely to do now that he is into his twilight years as a professional. Nonetheless, a glimmer of the old Pogba would be irresistible.
(Cover image from IMAGO)
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