Finnish footballer Roman Eremenko was on Friday banned for two years after testing positive for cocaine.
European football governing body UEFA decided the 29-year-old’s ban will last till 6 October, 2018.
“The analysis of the A sample revealed the presence of cocaine and its metabolites — a stimulant that is classified under the category of prohibited substances in the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) 2016 Prohibited List under class S6 — being prohibited in-competition,” a UEFA statement said.
“The player was found guilty of being in breach of the UEFA Anti-Doping Regulations, Edition 2016. As a result, the UEFA Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body decided to impose a two-year ban on Roman Eremenko, starting from 6 October 2016 date of the provisional suspension.”
Eremenko has been given three days to appeal the decision.