Paul Pogba has assured fans that he is ‘still alive’ after an old video of the former Manchester United midfielder went viral and sparked a bizarre death hoax.
The footage was from an interview with Al Jazeera in 2023 – before Pogba failed a drugs test – in which he discussed the harsh scrutiny facing elite footballers.
Pogba said: ‘Look at people like Cristiano Ronaldo or Leo Messi . They always have to prove again that they are Cristiano and Messi, after everything that they’ve done. Football is very beautiful but it is cruel. People can forget you the next day. You can do something great then the next day you are nobody.
‘People are waiting for you, to say “he’s done, his career is finished”, so many things, like I’m over, I’m dead, Paul Pogba doesn’t exist anymore.’
The last nine words of that quote were taken out of context and shared around social media earlier this week.
Multiple articles by publications in Nigeria – which have since been deleted – appeared to mistake Pogba’s old quotes for a recent cry for help. As a result, many fans commented that they feared he was suicidal.
Bizarrely, some fans even appeared to think that Pogba – despite physically appearing in said video – had died as misinformation spread across the internet.
The reality is that Pogba is alive and well.
He wrote on his Instagram story this week: ‘Old sarcastic comments deceitfully portrayed as “genuine and recent” to generate clicks. I’m still alive guys don’t worry.’
Pogba recently visited the Ivory Coast with former Man United team-mate Eric Bailly.
The 31-year-old documented the trip on Instagram as he posted nine photos alongside the caption: ‘Special moment in Ivory Coast with my brother @ericbailly24.
‘Going to see the needy and their childhood neighbourhood really gave me joy in my heart thank you for this beautiful day.’
But Pogba’s football career is still on hold and may never resume.
In August last year, Pogba tested positive for dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) – a substance that raises testosterone levels – after Juventus drew 1-1 with Bologna.
Six months later, the former Manchester United midfielder was banned for four years by Italy’s national anti-doping tribunal.
Pogba reacted by describing the verdict as ‘incorrect’ and he vowed to appeal by taking his case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
However, as things stand, he is still unable to play football anywhere in the world.
