France Call on Paul Pogba Ahead of Round of 16 Showdown With Belgium

• France have handed an invitation to Paul Pogba ahead of their highly-anticipated last-16 fixture against Belgium
• Pogba and one former French star are expected to play an important role in Les Bleus’ quest to win Euro 2024
• The two-time Euro champions will hope to get their tournament back on track after underwhelming in the group phase

Paul Pogba has received an invitation from the French Football Federation ahead of France’s Round of 16 clash with Belgium on Monday, July 1.

The 2018 World Cup winner, who is currently serving a four-year ban for failing a doping test, is expected to be present at what is arguably the standout fixture of the last-16 stage.

France call on Pogba ahead of Belgium game

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According to Football Italia, Pogba will not only be in the stands to support Didier Deschamps’ men in Dusseldorf but will also meet with the squad beforehand.

Why did France invite Paul Pogba?

The 31-year-old midfielder’s presence is seen as a morale booster for the team.

He won’t be the only former star brought in to motivate the current squad; Blaise Matuidi will also join in this effort.

Deschamps is banking on the influence of these two key players from the 2018 World Cup-winning team to inspire the current group as they aim to secure their first European Championship title since 2000.

Analysing France’s Euro 2024 campaign so far

France entered Euro 2024 as one of the favourites, given their depth of talent and recent success in international tournaments.

However, they finished as runners-up in their group, with surprise package Austria topping Group D.

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Les Bleus have struggled offensively, managing only two goals in the group stage, their lowest tally in a major tournament group stage since the 2010 World Cup, according to Opta Analyst.

Facing Belgium, who have kept two clean sheets in their three games so far, the 2016 runners-up will need to dig deep to advance to the quarter-finals.

Pogba addresses controversial viral video

In recent developments, Paul Pogba has addressed the controversy surrounding a resurfaced video of him making allegedly controversial comments, as reported by Sports Brief.

While the Frenchman is appealing his four-year ban, the old video of the 2013 Golden Boy Award winner has created a buzz online.

Pogba clarified that these comments were taken out of context and are being used to generate clicks. He reassured his fans that he remains “alive.”