Football is largely a clean sport; there’s a very low incidence of doping or drug use by football players but occasionally it does happen. Following Paul Pogba’s recent four-year football ban for doping, we made a list of some other players who have also been suspended for doping over the years.
7. Kolo Touré
Brother of Manchester City legend Yaya Touré served a six-month ban in 2011 after the defender tested positive for doping. City had to replace him with Joeleon Lescott in his absence. In his defence, the defender said he was taking his wife’s tablets without much knowledge
6. Edgar Davids
The Dutch midfielder famous for his glasses and dreadlock hairstyle was caught doping in 2001 as Nandrolene was found in his system.
5. Pep Guardiola
Treble-winning coach Pep Guardiola was caught doping in his playing days. It was in the year 2001 when he joined the Serie A from FC Barcelona. He was found to have nandrolone in his system. He was later cleared of all charges in 2009 after his appeal.
4. Fred
The former Manchester United player was suspended for four months in 2015 on account of doping. While in Chile on international duty, the Brazilian was caught with hydrochlorothiazide in his system. While hydrochlorothiazide is not a performance-enhancing drug, it can help mask one.
3. Andre Onana
Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana’s career was almost derailed while playing for Ajax as he was found doping. Authorities found the diuretic Frusemide in his urine and he was subsequently punished with a nine-month ban from the game.
2. Samir Nasir
The former Manchester City and Arsenal player served an 18-month-long ban from July 2017 to December 2018 after being found to have gone for a 500-milliliter infusion. The World Anti-Doping Agency only allows players to have a 50-milliliter infusion in six hours. His ban ended in 2018 and he was immediately snapped up by West Ham.
1. Diego Maradona
Napoli and Argentina legend and one of the best footballers in the history of the game, Diego Maradona was punished on more than one occasion for doping. The first ban came in 1991 while he was with Napoli. He served a fifteen-month ban after testing positive for cocaine.
The Argentinian served another fifteen-month ban after he was caught on ephedrine in the 1994 World Cup held in the United States. He was caught doping again when he went back to Argentina to play for Boca Juniors after which he decided to retire from his playing career.