Andre Onana given a year-long ban for doping

AFC Ajax goalkeeper Andre Onana has been given a 12-month ban by UEFA for doping. Furosemide, a performance enhancing drug, was found in the Cameroonian’s urine sample during a random drug test in October. According to a statement from Ajax management the youngster was feeling under the weather and took a pill that was previously prescribed to his partner. The next day, he was called in for a random drug test. "On the morning of 30 October Onana did not feel well. He wanted to take a tablet. Unwittingly, however, he took Lasimac, a drug that his partner had previously been prescribed,” the statement continued.

The Court of Arbitration and Sport ruled that he did not have the intention of cheating. However, the European Football Association believes that, according to the prevailing anti-doping rules, “an athlete has a duty at all times to ensure that no prohibited substances enter the body."

Onana has since released a statement on Instagram to clarify the situation. He condemned “unsportsmanlike conduct” and openly disagreed with UEFA’s decision calling it a “human mistake,” stating his intention to file an appeal. The full statement is linked at the bottom of the page.

Onana stated "I just want to clarify that everything was the result of human mistake. I mistook a medicine containing a substance banned by WADA for a simple aspirin. The medicine was prescribed to my girlfriend and I mistakenly took it for an aspirin because the packaging was almost identical, which I deeply regret.”

Ajax has not lost confidence in the player and will support him with an appeal. In a statement, The club’s managing director, Edwin Van Der Sar said: "We explicitly renounce performance-enhancing drugs; we stand for a clean sport. This is a terrible setback, for Andre himself but certainly also for us as a club.

"Andre is a top goalkeeper who has proven his worth for Ajax for many years and is very popular with the fans. We had hoped for a conditional suspension or a much shorter one than this twelve months, because it was demonstrably not meant to strengthen his body and thus improve his performance."

Onana has been one of the best goalkeepers over the past few years, just on the fringes of the world’s elite. He is a critical piece in both club and international setups. He has been continuously linked with a move away from the Johan Cruyff Arena. It’s difficult to see how much this ban will derail his prospering career, or whether it will at all.

Statement: https://www.instagram.com/p/CK6OJ3fhfZG/