Former Arsenal defender Bacary Sagna has urged Mikel Arteta to take a chance on former Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba in the January transfer window.
It has been a difficult few years for Pogba after his time at United ended under a cloud with many feeling as though he did not reach his full potential at Old Trafford. The Frenchman rejoined Juventus upon his release but was plagued with a series of injuries which scaled back his playing time.
In February, Pogba was handed a four year ban from football after he tested positive for Dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) the previous August. Upon appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, the 31-year-old’s ban has since been reduced to 18 months.
This means the midfielder can partake in training sessions again in January and play competitively once more in March 2025. Pogba remains under contract at Juve but it is unclear whether the Italian giants will be open to keeping him on the books especially if a club offers to take him off their hands.
Reports suggest Pogba would be open to a return to England and Sagna has told Paddy Power that Arsenal should be the ones to give him another chance. “The Premier League suits Paul Pogba – I would love to see him join Arsenal,” the former United man’s ex-international teammate explained.
“It would be great – he has experience; he loves to play with young players around him – that is when he is most efficient. At the 2018 World Cup, that was when he was most efficient – he had friends around him.
“Arsenal have a young, fresh team, and I see him performing in an Arsenal shirt. He will get love from their fans.
“Now, he can start from scratch again – he’s had time away from football, and he’ll be back with a desire to get back into a good space and play football again.” Pogba played just 12 matches for Juventus before his ban due to his injury issues.
