Football governing body UEFA has increased Samir Nasri’s doping ban to 18 months following an appeal against the original six-month sanction.
The former Arsenal and Manchester City midfielder was handed the original suspension in February after UEFA found the French international “guilty of using a prohibited method in accordance with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) prohibited list.” According to Nasri’s lawyer, the midfielder was sanctioned for receiving an intravenous drip treatment at a clinic in Los Angeles in 2016, when he was on loan at Sevilla from City.
“The player Samir Nasri is suspended for eighteen months. This suspension will start running on 1 July 2017,” UEFA said in a statement on their website.
“The player Samir Nasri is allowed to return to training, with any football club starting from 1 November 2018.”
UEFA said Nasri’s amended suspension was a result of negotiations between the player, WADA, the French Anti-Doping Agency and UEFA’s Ethics and Disciplinary inspector, who originally believed a two-year suspension was warranted.
primarily plays as an attacking midfielder and a winger, although he has also been deployed in central midfield. He is currently suspended from football following a doping violation.
Nasri is known for his dribbling, ball control and passing ability. Of Algerian ancestry, he is described as a player whose “vision and imagination make him an unpredictable opponent”. His playing style, ability and cultural background have drawn comparisons to French legend Zinedine Zidane.
Nasri began his football career playing for local youth clubs in his hometown Marseille. At age nine, he joined professional club Olympique de Marseille and spent the next seven years developing in the club’s youth academy at La Commanderie, the club’s training centre. In the 2004–05 season, he made his professional debut in September 2004 at age 17 against Sochaux.
In the following season, he became a regular starter in the team and also participated in European competition for the first time after playing in the 2005–06 edition of the UEFA Cup. In the 2006–07 campaign, Nasri won the National Union of Professional Footballers (UNFP) Young Player of the Year award and was also named to the Team of the Year. He finished his career with Marseille amassing over 160 appearances. He played in the teams that reached back-to-back Coupe de France finals in 2006and 2007.
In June 2008, Nasri joined Premier League club Arsenal on a four-year contract. He reached prominence with the team in his third season winning the Professional Footballers’ Association (PFA) Fans’ Player of the Month award on three occasions and being named to the association’s Team of the Year. In December 2010, he was named the French Player of the Year for his performances during the calendar year.In August 2011, after three seasons with Arsenal, Nasri joined Manchester City on a four-year contract. In his first season with the club, he won his first major honour as a player as the club won the 2011–12 Premier League.
Nasri is a former France youth international and has represented his nation at every level for which he was eligible. Prior to playing for the senior team, he played on the under-17 team that won the 2004 UEFA European Under-17 Championship. Nasri made his senior international debut in March 2007 in a friendly match against Austria. Two months later, he scored his first senior international goal in a 1–0 UEFA Euro 2008 qualifying win over Georgia. Nasri has represented France at two major international tournaments: UEFA Euro 2008 and Euro 2012.