For Paul Pogba, football was never supposed to end quietly.
The French midfielder has already lived through almost every chapter the modern game can offer — the wonderkid years, the multimillion-pound move, the World Cup triumph, the glamorous lifestyle, the devastating setbacks and, eventually, the long road back.
But now, at 33, Pogba finds himself facing a question no footballer wants to hear: Is it time to walk away?
The question has become louder after another difficult spell at Monaco, where the former Manchester United and Juventus midfielder struggled to stay on the pitch following his return from a doping suspension.
And as critics began questioning whether Pogba still has anything left to give football, his wife, Zulay Pogba, has stepped forward with a message that is as much about humanity as it is about football.
Her response was simple: Paul Pogba’s career is not for social media to decide.
‘Only God Knows When He Will Retire’
Zulay took to Instagram to push back against those calling on her husband to retire or accusing him of returning to football primarily for money.
For her, the argument misses the bigger picture.
She insisted that Pogba and his family are financially comfortable and questioned why people should assume that money was the motivation behind his return.
“For all the people saying Paul should retire or he came back to football for the money, let me make this clear, the only one who knows when he will retire is God,” she wrote.
Then came an even sharper response to those questioning Pogba’s motives.
“And for the ones who say he came back for the money, trust me we are very good with money, thank God.”
But beneath the defiance was something more personal.
Zulay reminded critics that behind the footballer, the trophies, the headlines and the social-media debates is simply a human being.
Behind The Footballer Is A Man
Football supporters often talk about players as if they are machines.
A midfielder has a bad game and he is finished.
A striker stops scoring and fans demand his departure.
An injury keeps returning and suddenly the player is accused of lacking commitment.
But Pogba’s wife believes social media has made it dangerously easy for people to forget that footballers experience disappointment, pain and uncertainty just like everyone else.
“Social media accepts everything. People can sit behind a screen and say whatever they want, insult someone, question their intentions and forget that there is an actual human being on the other side.”
That may be the most important part of her defence.
Because Pogba’s current situation is not simply about a footballer who can no longer stay fit.
It is about a player who has spent years fighting to reclaim something that once seemed almost impossible to lose — his place in the game he loves.
From Football’s Golden Boy To a Career Interrupted
There was a time when Pogba seemed destined to dominate football for years.
The Frenchman emerged as one of the most exciting midfielders of his generation, combining physical power, technical ability, creativity and a personality that made him impossible to ignore.
His return to Manchester United in 2016 for a then-world-record fee for a player became one of football’s biggest stories.
There were spectacular goals, magnificent passes and moments that reminded everyone why so much was expected of him.
Then came the injuries.
The criticism.
The controversies.
The uncertainty surrounding his future.
And eventually, the doping case that brought his career to an abrupt halt.
Pogba received a four-year ban in 2023 after testing positive for DHEA. The suspension was later reduced to 18 months following an appeal, allowing him to return to competitive football.
By then, however, the footballing world had changed.
And so had Pogba’s career.
Monaco Was Supposed To Be The Comeback Story
When Pogba joined Monaco in 2025, the move carried the feel of a second beginning.
After months away from competitive football, the Frenchman had another opportunity to prove that his story was not finished.
But football rarely follows the script.
Instead of a spectacular comeback, Pogba’s return was interrupted by another obstacle — his body.
He managed only six appearances for Monaco last season, leaving questions over whether the club would continue with him.
Reports have subsequently suggested that Monaco could consider ending his contract, despite Pogba reportedly earning around £44,000 a week.
For a player who once seemed capable of controlling the biggest matches in world football, it is an uncomfortable reality.
Yet Zulay’s message suggests that Pogba himself is not ready to let other people’s opinions determine the final chapter.
‘He Achieved The Dream Every Footballer Has’
And perhaps that is why Zulay’s strongest argument was not about money or injuries.
It was about achievement.
Critics asking what Pogba still has to prove, she argued, should remember something that can never be taken away from him.
He became a World Cup winner with France.
“For those questioning what he has left to prove, let me remind you he achieved the dream every footballer in the world grows up chasing, dreaming to have. He won the World Cup for his country.”
That is an important reminder.
Football can be brutally obsessed with what comes next.
The next contract.
The next trophy.
The next goal.
The next great performance.
But sometimes, the career itself deserves to be viewed as a whole.
Pogba has already stood on football’s biggest stage and lifted the biggest trophy in international football.
The Pogba The World Doesn’t Always See
Away from the football pitch, Pogba has also built a family life with Zulay, a Bolivian model and influencer whom he met in 2017.
The couple married in 2019 and have two sons, aged seven and six.
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That family perspective appears to be at the heart of Zulay’s reaction.
For millions watching from the outside, Pogba is a footballer.
For her, he is a husband, a father and a man who has spent years dealing with pressures most people will never experience.
And perhaps that is why she refuses to allow strangers on social media to write the final sentence of his career.
So, Should Pogba Retire?
That question remains unanswered.
Maybe Pogba still has another comeback in him.
Maybe his body will once again betray him.
Maybe another club will give him the opportunity to rediscover the midfielder who once illuminated Old Trafford, Turin and the international stage.
Or perhaps football is slowly preparing to close the door.
But that decision, as Zulay made clear, should belong to Pogba himself.
Because careers do not always end when the internet decides they should.
Sometimes, they end when the player is ready.
And for now, Paul Pogba does not appear ready to say goodbye.