UEFA miss chance to send a message

When I heard that two CSKA Moscow players had tested positive for drugs after their game at Manchester United I assumed that the club would be expelled from the competition.

Suspended

Russian international defenders Sergei Ignashevich and Aleksei Berezutsky were suspended on Tuesday for failing the doping tests on 3rd November.

The rules are quite clear. Article twelve of UEFAs disciplinary regulations says,

“If more than one player from the same team is charged with a doping offence in relation to a prohibited substance or methods, the team in question may be disqualified from the competition in progress and/or future competitions.”

Clearly, with the game doing everything it can to clean up it’s image, UEFA would need to take positive action and send a strong message around Europe.

Decided

You would think that wouldn’t you, but no, UEFA have decided very quickly that CSKA won’t be kicked out. The club qualified for the last sixteen on Tuesday when they beat Besiktas 2-1 in Turkey to finish above Wolfsburg who lost to Manchester United. Of course, CSKA won that game without the two suspended players.

A UEFA spokesperson tried to explain why CSKA wouldn’t face a ban,

“In this case it is a specified substance so disqualification of the team does not apply, it is more the sanction of the players themselves.”

Oh, I see!

CSKA have defended the players by claiming that the substance was within some medicine that they had been given for heavy colds when they were on international duty. They simply forgot to report the fact that it had been taken.

“The problem is that during the doping control procedures a clerical error was made by employees within our medical staff. For the players and for the club this news was truly shocking. Unfortunately, we do not yet fully understand all the circumstances of the case, but we have nothing to hide, and we believe our fans should be made aware of that. This situation has arisen in connection with the treatment of our players from a severe cold during their time with the national team, and not in any way with doping, which is also known by the relevant bodies within Uefa.”

The fact is that almost every sporting star in recent years who has failed a drugs test has claimed that they had simply taken a cold remedy. It may be true in this case, after all, the Russian newspaper Novaya Gazeta has recently declared that CSKA are the most honest club in the Russian Premier League.

Guilty

Whether or not the two players and/or the club are guilty of wrong doing or simply a clerical mistake, surely UEFA need to take positive action to send a strong message around European football.

The meeting they will hold to discuss the case will be on 17th December, the day before the draw for the last sixteen in the champions league will be made. At least UEFA could have held on until then and try to establish more evidence before making a decision.

I’m afraid that once again football’s governing body have missed an ideal opportunity to send a clear and justifiable message.