Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba’s first competitive start in over a year lasted only 23 minutes before he was forced off injured against Cremonese.

The France international covered his face as he left the field, with Juve going on to win 2-0.

“We’re all disappointed, not least because he was playing quite well,” said Juve boss Massimiliano Allegri.

“It’s sad because he’s made a lot of sacrifices to come back.

“He has big enough shoulders. There’s always a risk when you’ve gone a year without playing, more so when you start the match.”

It was Pogba’s first start since his final game for former side Manchester United against Liverpool in April 2022.

He suffered a calf injury in that game which ruled him out for the remainder of last season.

After rejoining Serie A club Juventus in the summer, Pogba suffered a knee injury in pre-season but initially opted not to get an operation, fearing it would rule him out of the World Cup in Qatar.

But he was later deemed to need surgery anyway and, although he returned to the squad in January, he suffered another muscular problem that delayed his return to action further.

He played the first game of his second spell with Juve on 28 February.

After he was dropped Juventus’ Europa League tie with Freiburg in March for disciplinary reasons, Pogba suffered another setback when he suffered a right thigh injury while taking free-kicks in training.

He returned to the bench against Sporting Lisbon on 13 April and had made nine substitute appearances in total before being selected for the starting side against Cremonese.

Nicolo Fagioli and Bremer scored after the break to secure victory for second-place Juventus.

Cremonese are 19th, six points from safety, with three games to play.