Manchester United and French national team’s Paul Pogba has tested positive for the global virus, according to national team coach Didier Deschamps.
The 27-year-old was in the French squad that is scheduled to take on Pogba's club teammate Victor Lindelof and his Sweden side followed by a repeat of the 2018 FIFA World Cup final against Croatia. However, the positive test result means Pogba will now isolate for 14 days before being tested again.
🔴 Didier Deschamps a indiqué s'être passé de Paul Pogba suite à un test positif au Covid-19
— Yahoo Sport France (@YahooSportFR) August 27, 2020
"Unfortunately he underwent a test yesterday (Wednesday) which was revealed to be positive this morning," Deschamps said of Pogba's absence from the group.
The news comes as another huge blow to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Manchester United, who are due to start pre-season training soon without any new signings in sight and now with their ace midfielder.
Tottenham Hotspur's Tanguy N'Dombele, who is heavily linked to a move away from North London, has also tested positive for the disease and he too is ruled out for France's upcoming matches on September 6th and 9th.
Rennes' 17-year-old midfielder Eduardo Camavinga has been called up to the national side to replace Paul Pogba for the matches against Sweden and Croatia. The teenager had a breakthrough campaign in Ligue 1 this season and has been a subject of interest for Europe’s biggest clubs including Real Madrid, Manchester United, Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich.
But the youngster has pledged his commitment to Rennes for the upcoming campaign and the club has also slapped an 80 million euro price tag on their crown jewel, which hasn’t deterred the pursuit of those chasing the young Frenchman.
Camavinga joins Lyon's Houssem Aouar and RB Leipzig’s Dayot Upamecano in being called-up to the national team for the first time.
France squad:
Goalkeepers: Hugo Lloris (Tottenham/ENG), Mike Maignan (Lille), Steve Mandanda (Marseille)
Defenders: Lucas Digne (Everton/ENG), Leo Dubois (Lyon), Lucas Hernandez (Bayern/GER), Presnel Kimpembe (PSG), Clement Lenglet (Barcelona/ESP), Ferland Mendy (Real Madrid/ESP), Dayot Upamecano (RB Leipzig/GER), Raphael Varane (Real Madrid/ESP)
Midfielders: Eduardo Camavinga (Rennes), N'Golo Kante (Chelsea/ENG), Steven Nzonzi (Rennes), Adrien Rabiot (Juventus/ITA), Moussa Sissoko (Tottenham/ENG)
Forwards: Houssem Aouar (Lyon), Wissam Ben Yedder (Monaco), Olivier Giroud (Chelsea/ENG), Antoine Griezmann (Barcelona/ESP), Jonathan Ikone (Lille), Anthony Martial (Manchester United/ENG), Kylian Mbappe (PSG)
Feature image courtesy: AFP / Guillaume Souvant
