Pogba could miss World Cup but Allegri offers some hope on knee injury

Paul Pogba could miss the World Cup with the Juventus midfielder set for knee surgery.

It has been confirmed the former Manchester United man will go under the knife after picking up a knee injury in the summer.

Pogba officially re-joined the Italian club on a four-year deal this summer after his contract expired at Old Trafford.

His return to the club, though, hasn’t gone to plan, with the midfielder suffering a tear of the lateral meniscus in his right knee.

It means he could now be an absentee for the competition in Qatar which begins on November 20 in what would be a huge blow for France and manager Didier Deschamps.

Defending champions France face Australia in their first clash, before taking on Denmark and Tunisia in their remaining group games.

According to Italian newspaperLa Gazetta dello Sport, there are two potential courses of treatment for Pogba, with one possibly ruling him out until 2023.

The first option would be to remove a piece of the meniscus, which would roughly sideline Pogba for 40 to 60 days.

A less risky option is to suture the lesion, but it could require Pogba to miss four to five months of football.

However, Juve manager Massimiliano Allegri suggested all hope is not lost regarding Pogba’s availability in Qatar.

“I hope we get Paul [Pogba] back before the World Cup. But there are 45 days to go until it starts. The World Cup isn’t my problem. Juve’s problem is he comes back in January.”

This is the latest setback in what’s been a turbulent period in Pogba’s life, with the player recently been accused of using a witch doctor to cast a spell on France teammate Kylian Mbappe.

Pogba denies the claims made by his brother Mathias and Mbappe has sided with his Les Bleus teammate.

“Today I prefer to believe the word of my teammate,” Mbappe said.

“It is his word against the word of his brother, I am going to believe my teammate.

“It’s not a time to put more onto him. I’m pretty detached from it all.”