Hoffenheim duo in hot water over missed drugs test

Hoffenheim defenders Andreas Ibertsberger and Christoph Janker are in trouble with the German Football Federation (DFB) for failing to take a drugs test in the alloted time, it was announced on Saturday.

The pair were ten minutes late for a drugs test after Hoffenheim’s 1-1 draw with Borussia Moenchengladbach on February 7, after attending a team meeting, but although both produced negative tests, they are in hot water with the DFB for breaking doping regulations.

The DFB disciplinary committee must now decide whether to take action against Ibertsberger, who has 14 caps for Austria, and Janker, who is German.

Dr Rainer Koch, a DFB vice-president, explained the seriousness of the situation on the governing body’s website.

“At first glance, the case resembles the circumstances of Italian players Daniele Mannini (who plays for Napoli), and Davide Possanzini, (who plays for Brescia), who were each given a one-year ban by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in January this year,” he said.

“Whether that decision is applicable to the two Hoffenheim players is now up to the DFB’s disciplinary committee to decide.”