Paul Pogba: ‘I’m the one who suffered the most’

Paul Pogba (32) made his long-awaited AS Monaco debut on Saturday as Sébastien Pocognoli’s Les Monégasques suffered a heavy away defeat to Habib Beye’s Rennes (4-1). The France international midfielder took to the pitch for a ten-minute cameo with Rennes firmly out of sight for the visitors, who were reduced to ten following Denis Zakaria’s red card.

Pogba admitted that he was still a long way from being able to play the full 90 minutes of a football game, but he says he was mostly relieved to restart his professional career after a two-year hiatus. The 2018 World Cup winner with France added that he never feared to not being able to return at the highest level. “ Otherwise, I would have retired “, Pogba said to reporters in the Roazhon Park’s mixed zone. “ I’m a competitor, and football isn’t over. We worked and waited for over two years, and today it’s done, thank God. “

Pogba continued to claim his innocence over the doping allegations that brutally halted his Juventus spell two years ago. “ I believe in myself and my abilities, and since I know I hadn’t done anything wrong and it wasn’t my fault, I always hoped. ” Pogba added that, amidst the whirlwind of a doping ban and his kidnapping by armed men , he was “ the one who suffered the most .” “ There are moments when the devil tries to speak in your head to tell you it’s over, but there is a Good God .”

GFFN | Bastien Cheval