Courtesy: 90min and africatopsports.com
Andre Onana is on the verge of joining Arsenal from Eredivisie side Ajax. Onana’s doping case at CAS is due tomorrow and the verdict could have an impact on the fee demanded by Ajax for Onana’s transfer.
The UEFA suspended Onana for 12 months back in February 2021, after testing positive for Furosemide, a banned substance. Ajax argued that Onana had accidentally taken his wife’s medicine. Furosemide isn’t a performance-enhancing drug, but it can be used to mask various other performance-enhancing drugs. According to the Amsterdam club, UEFA’s disciplinary body has ruled that Onana had no intention of cheating.
However, the European Football Association also believes that an athlete has a duty at all times to ensure that no prohibited substances enter the body.
Therefore Onana had received the lightest punishment. Onana was banned from all domestic and international tournaments which included his services to the Cameronian national football team. Additionally, this ban means that he is not allowed to train with his teammates or at the Ajax training centre. Onana continued to train elsewhere to stay fit: he has started working with a personal trainer. Onana and Ajax have appealed to the CAS to strike down or shorten this ban.
Arsenal is on the lookout for a first-choice goalkeeper as Bernd Leno wants a move away from London. The Arsenal project has convinced Onana and the club have assured him of his spot as the first-choice goalkeeper. Reportedly the transfer of Onana to Arsenal will be completed quickly as soon as the CAS verdict is known.
The outcome of the CAS verdict which will be delivered in one or two week’s time could impact the transfer fee demanded. If the sentence is shortened, Onana will still yield about 6 to 9 million euros. If the penalty remains, Ajax will have to settle for about 2 million. Onana came to Ajax in January 2015 for 150,000 euros from FC Barcelona.