Juventus and France national team midfielder Paul Pogba will undergo surgery to treat a knee injury that has kept him out of the start of the season. As per reports, the player is at risk of missing the 2022 FIFA World Cup, to be held later this year in Qatar.
The surgery will likely keep him out somewhere between 40 days to two months, putting his hopes of representing France in Qatar this November in jeopardy. Les Bleus are the defending champions of the world and will begin their title defence on November 22 against Australia before facing Denmark and Tunisia.
Any hopes of the French national team getting Pogba back in time for their World Cup campaign were washed away by Juventus manager Massimiliano Allegri. In a recent press conference, the Italian confirmed that the midfielder is likely to spend the entire year on the sidelines, including the World Cup months of November and December. As to what it does for Les Bleus’ tournament hopes, Allegri claimed that he was only concerned with what the player’s absence means for Juventus.
“It’s hard to see him back before January.”
“I like to be realistic and now we must think about the Champions League and then Salernitana. I don’t know if he’ll play in the World Cup, but it’s not my problem, I know he’ll be back in January for Juventus,”
the tactician said.
Pogba returned to Juventus this summer, signing for the Bianconeri for free after his contract with Manchester United had expired – repeating the events from six years ago. However, the 29-year-old sustained an injury before making his second debut, effectively ruling him out of Juve’s start to the season.
For France, Pogba’s absence would be a huge blow. The midfielder was a key member of the squad that won the World Cup four years ago and even scored France’s third goal in a 4-2 win over Croatia in the final.
