Why isn’t Paul Pogba playing against Man City?

Monaco midfielder Paul Pogba will not feature in Wednesday’s Champions League clash with Manchester City.

The 32-year-old has yet to make his debut for his new Ligue 1 club, having not played a competitive game in two years due to his doping ban. Initially suspended for four years, Pogba ultimately had his punishment reduced to 18 months.

He was able to train professionally again in January of this year and could have played from March onwards. However, it wasn’t actually until this summer that Pogba found a new club following his dismissal from Juventus in late 2024.

Monaco decided to take a chance on the veteran midfielder, but it was always clear that it would be a long road back for Pogba. The Principality club drew up a three-month training regime to get the 2018 World Cup winner back into match shape.

Prior to his move, Pogba kept himself fit in Miami with a personal trainer, but there is a significant difference between training on your own and playing competitive games of football.

When will Pogba make his Monaco debut?

The end of Pogba’s three-month programme is nearing, and Monaco are confident that he will be able to finally return to the pitch this month. He has been increasingly taking part in team training, with head coach Adi Hutter recently saying that his debut is ‘getting closer and closer.’

However, Tuesday’s clash with Man City has come too early in Pogba’s rehabilitation. He will not feature in Monaco’s home Champions League game against the Premier League giants, who were previously linked with a move for him.

Optimistic forecasts have Pogba in line to make his return to competitive football in Monaco’s Ligue 1 fixture against Nice on Sunday, 5 October. But coach Hutter believes that it is more likely that he will hand the France international his first minutes after the international break.

Monaco travel to Angers on 18 October and are hoping to have Pogba ready to go. “We maybe expected him to be in the squad against Nice, but we may need to wait until Angers,” Hutter said in his pre-Man City press conference. “We hope that he can play after the international break.”

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