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Paul Pogba's 4-Year doping ban reduced to 18 months

FILE - Juventus' Paul Pogba keeps his eyes on the ball during an Italian Cup soccer match between Inter Milan and Juventus, at the San Siro Stadium   -  
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LaPresse

Italy

After appealing to the Court of Arbitration for sport, Paul Pogba has had his 4-year ban for doping slashed to 18 months. The decision means that the Juventus midfielder will be able to pick up his career again next year, having started the ban in February.

In August last year, the 31 year old tested positive for testosterone, He was given the maximum punishment by Italy's anti doping court; the initial four year suspension could have potentially been a career ending ban.

He was also issued a large fine in March.

Following the reduction of the ban, Pogba said ‘the nightmare is finally over’ and that he could now envision the day where he could once again pursue his dreams.

'It's been an extremely painful time in my life because everything I've worked so hard for has been put on hold', the France World Cup winner added.

Pogba also thanked his fans for their support and said he was looking forward to getting back on the pitch.

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