Rio de Janeiro Dec 22 (IANS) Peru captain Paolo Guerrero confirmed that he plans to appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in a bid to overturn a doping ban.
FIFA s appeal committee on Wednesday reduced Guerrero s one-year suspension to six months citing "the particular degree of fault" after he tested positive for a stimulant reports Xinhua news agency.
The ruling cleared the way for Guerrero to play in next year s World Cup in Russia Peru s first appearance in football s showpiece tournament since 1982.
But the 33-year-old who plays his club football for Brazil s Flamengo said he was not satisfied with the decision which allows him to return to action in May a month before the World Cup.
"I don t feel relieved. It s important for me to keep fighting to prove my innocence " Guerrero said in a television interview.
"It s an injustice that I have been penalized because I ve shown all along that I m innocent. I ve proven it and I ll continue to prove it until I m absolved."
Guerrero was banned after the cocaine metabolite benzoylecgonine was detected in his urine following Peru s World Cup qualifier against Argentina on October 5.
He subsequently missed Peru s World Cup intercontinental playoff matches against New Zealand in November which the Andean nation won 2-0 on aggregate.
Guerrero has denied using cocaine or drinking coca tea and says he was a victim of food or drink contamination.
The former Bayern Munich striker has been capped 85 times for Peru and is the country s all-time leading scorer with 32 goals.
The 2018 World Cup will be played in Russia from June 14 to July 15. Peru have been drawn in Group C alongside France Australia and Denmark.
--IANS
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