Merci Paul: Pogba's Monaco Stay Ends After One Injury-Hit Season
Paul Pogba's time at AS Monaco is over after a single season, with the club announcing his departure on 19 August 2026 under the headline "Merci Paul !"
The 33-year-old's contract, which ran until June 2027, was terminated early because objectives set by both the club and the player had only been "partially achieved," according to BBC Sport. It brings a quiet end to a short and frustrating chapter on the Côte d'Azur.
Pogba played just six matches for Monaco in the 2025-26 season, five of them as a substitute. He had joined the club last summer after the Court of Arbitration for Sport reduced a doping ban — originally four years — to 18 months, clearing him to return to professional football in March 2025. That suspension had been handed down during his second spell at Juventus, a period in which Pogba also battled serious knee injuries. Monaco offered him a route back; CEO Thiago Scuro noted that the club was glad Pogba had been able to return to the pitch and to professional football during his time there.
The exit had been signalled for over a week. BBC Sport reported on 11 August that Pogba was expected to leave amid talks over a contract termination, with Yahoo Sports adding the following day that a fresh thigh injury suffered in early August had accelerated the split. The deal was expected to be torn up by mutual agreement.
Injury struck again at Monaco's pre-season training camp in England in the week before the announcement — a hamstring problem that, BBC Sport reported, could delay any prospective move to a new club. For a player who has spent much of the last three years either suspended, recovering from surgery, or working back to match fitness, another soft-tissue setback is a familiar and unwelcome companion.
Where Pogba goes next is the open question. BBC Sport reports interest from Major League Soccer, and he has previously been linked with DC United and Inter Miami — the latter now home to Lionel Messi, Luis Suárez and a cluster of former European stars. A move stateside would offer a lower-intensity league and a fresh start, though any transfer will need to wait until his hamstring is assessed.
What lingers is the gap between the player who walked into Monaco and the one walking out. Pogba arrived as a World Cup winner seeking redemption after the darkest period of his career. He leaves having barely featured, his body again refusing to cooperate at the worst possible moment. Monaco, for their part, wished him well and moved on.
Pogba is 33. There is still time for another chapter. But the window for the story to end on his own terms is narrowing.
