Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba has been temporarily suspended from football after a failed doping test, Italy’s national anti-doping tribunal has confirmed. The anti-doping test, conducted after Juventus’ 3-0 win over Udinese on August 20, found elevated levels of testosterone in the former Manchester United midfielder’s system. In a statement, NADO Italia stated, “In acceptance of the instance proposed by the National Anti-doping Prosecutor, it has provided for the provisional suspension of the athlete Paul Labile Pogba.”
Juventus also released a statement after the failed dope test saying they were considering the next steps. Pogba could face a ban of up to four years, according to The Guardian. However, Paul Pogba is the latest player to have failed the anti-doping test. In the past, several football players have reported elevated levels of testosterone, a hormone known for enhancing athletes’ endurance, in their systems.
Here’s a list of other players who failed the doping test and faced bans.
Andre Onana
Manchester United goalkeeper Andre Onana was banned, by UEFA for 12 months in February 2021, after he tested positive for the banned substance Furosemide. The Cameroon player explained that the failed test was a result of his pregnant wife’s medicine, which he consumed by mistake. He appealed the decision and the ban was reduced to nine months.
Adrian Mutu
Following a promising first season with Chelsea under Jose Mourinho, the £15.8million signing, Mutu, faced a seven-month ban after testing positive for cocaine in 2004. Mutu soon fell out of favour at The Blues despite being once tipped as the next big thing in the Premier League.
Diego Maradona
Perhaps the most high-profile name on the list of players banned for failing the dope test was former Argentina captain and world cup-winner Diego Maradona. The former Napoli star tested positive for cocaine in 1991. The superstar was handed a 15-month ban and a $70,000 fine after the failed test.
Then during the 1994 World Cup, Maradona tested positive for ephedrine. The fiery forward was sent home after the failed test, ending his career for the national side. The incident was also the beginning of the end of his football career.
Mark Bosnich
Former Chelsea goalkeeper was another player to have failed a doping test. Bosnich tested positive for cocaine in September 2002 and was banned for nine months from football. Later, Bosnich accepted that he had a cocaine habit but it started after his career finished. A spiked drink in a nightclub was his reason for failing the doping test.
Kolo Toure
Kolo Toure, the former Arsenal and Manchester City defender tested positive for a banned substance in 2009. He was handed a six-month ban. The Ivorian, it came to light, was taking water tablets that belonged to his wife to shift weight, in what the FA referred to as “a misplaced perception that he was fat.”
Samir Nasri
Another Arsenal and Manchester City player, Samir Nasri was banned from the game in 2018 for an anti-doping violation from 2016. The six-month ban came after the Frenchman was found guilty of using a “prohibited method” at a Los Angeles clinic, Drip Doctors, “to help keep him hydrated and in top health during his busy soccer season.” Samir was with Spanish team Sevilla at the time, on loan from City.
Pep Guardiola
And while he is one of the top managers in world football today, Pep Guardiola, in 2001, was slapped with a 4-month ban for consuming a banned substance. He was playing for Brescia in Italy at the time and was found guilty of consuming Nandrolone, a type of anabolic steroid. Following a successful appeal six years later, the charges were dropped.
