'We all see he is a different player' - Paul Pogba 'still behind' at Juventus after injury nightmare, says Massimiliano Allegri

• Pogba being eased back into Juve team
• Allegri says he is still behind co-stars
• Midfielder has struggled with injury all season

WHAT HAPPENED? Pogba came off the bench to play the last seven minutes as Juve lost 1-0 to Sassuolo on Sunday. The game was just his third in Serie A this season as a series of injuries have kept him out of action for the vast majority of the season. Allegri says the Frenchman is not yet ready to be regularly starting matches, and he will continue to manage his minutes in the coming weeks.

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WHAT THEY SAID: "Pogba is a strong player, but right now he's not in the ideal condition to play a 90-minute match. He is still behind athletically, today was already better than last time but he is still behind," the Juve boss said to DAZN. "We all see that he is a different player. Slowly, we'll bring him maybe to half an hour and then later. The important thing is that it gives consistency, the knee is responding well."

THE BIGGER PICTURE: Pogba returned to Juventus last summer on a free transfer after his contract at Manchester United expired. However, his return to the Turin side has not gone as planned due to his fitness problems. He had to wait until February to make his first appearance of the season and has only played a total of 46 minutes across four games in Serie A and the Europa League.

IN THREE PHOTOS:

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WHAT NEXT? Pogba will hope to feature again for Juventus as they take on Sporting CP in the second leg of their Europa League quarter-final tie on Thursday. Allegri's team have a 1-0 lead from the first leg.