Real Madrid have denied a claim that club captain, Sergio Ramos, failed a doping test after the 2017 Champions League final.
The LaLiga giants also debunked claimed that the proper procedures were not followed, when Ramos was asked to take a test following a league game against Malaga in April 2018.
The article published on Der Spiegel’s website claimed that after the 2017 UCL final in Cardiff, Ramos gave a sample which contained traces of WADA-prohibited substance dexamethasone, a steroid often used to treat inflammation, but no disciplinary action was ever taken.
The report adds, however, the club noted that Ramos had received an injection of a different medication, Celestone Chronodose, on the day before the final.
Like dexamethasone, Celestone Chronodose, better known as betamethasone, is also used as an anti-inflammatory and is also a banned substance by WADA.
Real Madrid on Friday, quickly responded with a statement which said the case mentioned in the Der Spiegel story was “immediately closed” by the relevant authorities after “specific information” was provided, while also calling the reports “insubstantial.”
“With regards to the reports published by Der Spiegel in relation to our captain, Sergio Ramos, the club wishes to express the following,” the Madrid statement said.
“1. Sergio Ramos has never breached anti-doping regulations.
“2. UEFA requested specific information and immediately closed the case referred to, as is customary in such instances, following tests carried out by experts from the World Anti-Doping Association [WADA] and UEFA itself.
“3. In terms of the rest of the content published by the aforementioned publication, the club will not be making any comment, given the clearly insubstantial nature of the reports,” it read.
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