Paul Pogba had to wait 26 months for this moment: on Saturday evening, the 32-year-old came on as a substitute in Monaco’s away game in Rennes – but Pogba was unable to prevent the Monegasques from losing.
It was the 85th minute at Roazhon Park in Rennes when Monaco coach Sebastien Pocognoli ended Pogba’s long wait and sent him onto the field to replace Mamadou Coulibaly.
Pogba had last played professionally on September 3, 2023, when he was still with Juventus Turin. This was followed by a lengthy doping ban and several injuries. His ban expired in March of this year, and his contract with Juve had already been terminated in November 2024. Pogba then moved to the principality this summer. Curiously, Pogba made his Ligue 1 debut at the ripe old age of 32. Born east of Paris, Pogba joined Manchester United at the tender age of 16 without ever having played in the top flight in his home country. He then moved back and forth between ManUnited and Juve before his inglorious end at the Old Lady with the doping offense. Pogba always denied knowingly taking anything illegal.
When he came on, the score was already 0-4.
His first minutes at Monaco ended in a clear 1-4 defeat. By the time he came on, the game was already decided, with Rennes leading 4-0 thanks to goals from Boudlal (20′), Camara (48′), Embolo (73′) and Blas (83′). Biereth was only able to make the score look a little better for AS in stoppage time (90’+5).
Next Friday, Stade Rennes will kick off the 14th matchday at 8:45 p.m. at FC Metz. AS Monaco will face Pafos FC in the Champions League on Wednesday (6:45 p.m.) before hosting PSG on Saturday (5 p.m.).
