The Argentine 2022 world champion Alejandro Gomez, nicknamed Papu Gomez, explained on Sunday that he had never engaged in doping even though he received a two-year suspension, and that he could take legal action to non-compliance with procedure. “I confirm that the disciplinary committee of the Spanish anti-doping agency has notified me of a two-year suspension,” he explained on his Instagram account.
“I have never used, nor intended to use, a doping practice,” continued the attacking midfielder, under contract since the end of September with the Italian 1st division club Monza. As his club explained in a press release published Friday, Gomez, 35, tested positive for terbutaline, a bronchodilator, “a positive test (…) the result of involuntary absorption”.
“This substance,” Gomez explained, “went into my system by mistake, accidentally and unintentionally, in the form of a spoonful of my son’s cough syrup. It should be noted that taking terbutaline is possible for professional athletes for therapeutic use and that in no case does it improve sporting performance in football. Gomez concludes his press release by indicating that he had “put this file in the hands of (his) lawyers considering that the processing of the disciplinary file was not carried out in accordance with the regulatory provisions”.
The doping test was carried out in October 2022 when he was still under contract with Spanish club Sevilla FC, just weeks before the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. Gomez participated, as a starter, in two matches of the 2022 World Cup, but not in the final won by Argentina against France on penalties (3-3 ap. 4 tab to 2).
The attacking midfielder spent most of his career in the Italian Championship, first at Catania (2010-13) and especially at Atalanta from 2014 to 2021 where he scored 59 goals in 252 matches in all competitions. . Gomez has been without a club since his contract with Sevilla ended last July. He played two matches in the jersey of Monza, 7th in the Italian Championship before the 9th day this weekend.
