Peru captain Guerrero in last ditch appeal to Swiss court

Lima (AFP) – Peru captain Paolo Guerrero made a last-ditch appeal to a Swiss court Friday to overturn a ban on him playing at the World Cup imposed for doping, the Peruvian Football Federation said.

The move is the last legal option for Guerrero, who has received the backing of the Peruvian Football Federation in his appeal to the Swiss Federal Court.

“We did it with the hope of seeing Paolo at the World Cup, that reflects the feeling of the FPF and the whole country,” the federation’s president Edwin Oviedo in a statement released in Lima.

The Swiss court is the only body qualified to amend or cancel the suspension. 

The player and Ovideo met FIFA President Gianni Infantino in Zurich on Tuesday, but afterwards a statement from world football’s ruling body said it was virtually powerless to change final decisions by the Swiss-based Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).

Guerrero’s bid to clear his name following a ban for testing positive for traces of cocaine only resulted in the CAS increasing an initial six-month suspension to 14 months last week.

Guerrero has also been suspended by his Brazilian club Flamengo and is not scheduled to play again until January next year.