The Old Lady head coach, Max Allegri, has claimed he is sorry on a human and footballing level for Paul Pogba after the player received a 4-year ban for doping a few days ago from the Italian agencies.
Max talked about the issue with the reporters today before his team’s visit to Napoli tomorrow that he spoke with the French midfielder, who is under a deal with Juventus until the summer of 2026 after he learned about the ban. Pogba tested positive for testosterone after the Old Lady’s match vs. Udinese in August, in which he didn’t play and spent the whole game on the bench.
“I wrote Paul a message 2 days ago,” the Juventus manager admitted. “On a human level, I feel bad for him, but also from a footballing point of view. The game is losing a fantastic and difficult-to-find footballer who I had the honor of being his manager.
🗣️ Max Allegri :
“Pogba? I sent him a message the other day. I’m sorry, football loses an extraordinary player. I had the fortune to coach him, players like him are hard to find. I can’t comment on the verdict because there are proper bodies for that.”#Juventus pic.twitter.com/o8XSacjwhE
— Forza Juventus (@ForzaJuveEN) March 2, 2024
“I must add that Pogba is also a very good human.”
The French national team head coach, Didier Deschamps, also supported Pogba when the news about his ban was announced. Deschamps shared that he didn’t think Paul would have intentionally taken an illegal substance.