SM
Watford vs. Leeds: 11 hrs 42 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews

FA reveals Nathaniel Mendez-Laing was banned for cocaine use

:Headline: FA reveals Nathaniel Mendez-Laing was banned for cocaine use: ID:434959: from db_amp
The FA has revealed the suspension was handed out to the Middlesbrough winger when he was at Cardiff.

Middlesbrough winger Nathaniel Mendez-Laing served a three-month suspension for cocaine use last year, the Football Association has announced.

The FA has revealed Mendez-Laing served the ban after a positive drugs test administered on July 4, 2020, saying he admitted taking cocaine "in a context unrelated to sporting performance".

Mendez-Laing was playing for Cardiff at the time and had his contract terminated last September for what the Sky Bet Championship club termed an "alleged breach of contract".

The 28-year-old joined Middlesbrough earlier this month and was reunited with manager Neil Warnock after the pair won promotion to the Premier League with Cardiff in the 2017-18 season.

An FA statement read: "The Middlesbrough FC player provided an in-competition urine sample to the FA via UK Anti-Doping officials on 4 July 2020 while playing for Cardiff City FC and it was found to contain metabolites of cocaine once subsequently analysed.

"Cocaine is classified as a prohibited substance in-competition by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), therefore Nathaniel Mendez-Laing was charged by the FA for a breach of its Anti-Doping regulations and provisionally suspended on 14 August 2020.

"Nathaniel Mendez-Laing admitted the charge but was able to explain that the substance had been ingested out-of-competition in a context that was unrelated to sporting performance.

"An independent Regulatory Commission was subsequently convened to decide an appropriate sanction and, in line with the revised 2021 WADA Code that permits reduced sanctions for 'Substances of Abuse', applied a back-dated three-month suspension from 14 August 2020."

Mendez-Laing, who has yet to play for Middlesbrough, joined Cardiff from Rochdale in 2017 and made 92 appearances for the Bluebirds, scoring 14 goals.

He had previously played for Wolves and Peterborough and had loan spells at Sheffield United, Portsmouth, Shrewsbury and Cambridge.

In a statement released to the BBC, Mendez-Laing said: "With the help of my family, close friends, my agent, and the PFA (Professional Footballers' Association) during this extremely difficult time, I have been able to overcome my personal hurdles, to focus, and invest my time in working hard, determined to return to football.

"I appreciate all the support I have been given throughout. I now want to leave that period of my life in the past where it belongs.

"I'm excited about the future and delighted to be back doing what I love."

amp_article__434959 : Database Data restored...  : 
last updated article - 2021-02-12 17:36:43:
html db last update - 2021-03-10 12:51:17 :

ex - 7200 : read : read cache amp html

Click here for more stories about Nathaniel Mendez-Laing

Click here for more stories about Cardiff City

Share this article now:
Recommended Next on SM
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Leeds UnitedLeeds38257670284282
2Leicester CityLeicester37264774334182
3Ipswich TownIpswich38249580493181
4Southampton36227773472673
5West Bromwich AlbionWest Brom381991059362366
6Norwich CityNorwich381871369541561
7Hull City371610115346758
8Coventry CityCoventry3715121059431657
9Preston North EndPreston37168134954-556
10Middlesbrough38166165352154
11Cardiff CityCardiff38165174351-853
12Sunderland38146184845348
13Watford381212145351248
14Bristol City38138174245-347
15Swansea CitySwansea381210164858-1046
16Millwall381110173650-1443
17Blackburn RoversBlackburn38119185164-1342
18Plymouth ArgylePlymouth381011175462-841
19Stoke CityStoke38118193553-1841
20Queens Park RangersQPR381010183650-1440
21Birmingham CityBirmingham38109194259-1739
22Huddersfield TownHuddersfield38815154261-1939
23Sheffield WednesdaySheff Weds38115223061-3138
24Rotherham UnitedRotherham38311243077-4720
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .