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FIFA has suspended Peru captain Paolo Guerrero for a year after the player tested positive for cocaine, meaning he is set to miss the World Cup. Last month, Flamengo striker Guerrero was provisionally suspended for 30 days after failing a doping test. The Peru Football Federation said Guerrero had tested positive on Oct. 5 after the World Cup qualifying match against Argentina. FIFA said he "tested positive for cocaine metabolite benzoylecgonine, a substance included in WADA's 2017 Prohibited List." A statement added: "By testing positive for a prohibited substance, the player has violated article 6 of the FIFA Anti-Doping Regulations and, as such, contravened article 63 of the FIFA Disciplinary Code. "The suspension period starts on Nov. 3 2017, the date on which the player was provisionally suspended by the chairman of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee." It said the suspension would cover "all types of matches, including domestic, international, friendly and official fixtures." He can appeal to FIFA, and later at the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Last month, Guerrero's lawyers said the player denied using any type of banned substance and would appeal. Guerrero was Peru's joint top scorer with five goals in qualifying. He missed Peru's decisive intercontinental playoff win over New Zealand after FIFA provisionally banned him while prosecuting the case, Peru were drawn last week in a World Cup group with France, Denmark and Australia. Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
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