Liverpool Players Who Took Drugs

Liverpool players who took drugs? Here we look at the top Liverpool players who have taken drugs in the past. Which Liverpool players have failed drugs tests? Here, we find out the Liverpool players who took drugs in the past.

Liverpool Players Who Took Drugs? Check out the Liverpool Players Who Took Drugs!

Football is a tough sport and in the highest level, stress often interferes with a player’s mindset. Paired with a big bank account and infused in all the glory of a public figure, lot of players give in to drug use and partying.

There are also other instances when a footballer has been motivated to take drugs. If a player isn’t feeling up to the high demands of their fitness and physicality, then some of them have used drugs to boost their performances. Performance-enhancing drugs have been banned for a long time now and drugs tests are performed routinely for top-level athletes and footballers. Some get caught, some don’t.

While other professional footballers have taken illegal drugs such as cocaine for recreational use, they have suffered the consequences when caught through bans and hefty fines.

So which Liverpool players have taken drugs and been caught? Here we find out.

Top Liverpool Players Who Took Drugs

Here we will look at Liverpool Players Who Took Drugs! Starting with:

Mamadou Sakho- Liverpool Players Who Took Drugs

Mamadou Sakho was once viewed as a prime acquisition by Liverpool until a doping test and a string of poor performances dropped his career into a steep decline. The centre-back was tested positive for a prohibited substance, reported to be a ‘fat-burning’ supplement, following the second leg of a round of 16 Europa League tie against Manchester United in April 2016.

He was suspended for 30 days and never recovered his spot in the Liverpool first team. Even though UEFA cleared him of doping, he was sold off to Crystal Palace in 2017 for £26m. Now, Sakho has taken it upon himself to fight back against the disciplinary body, launching a lawsuit against the World Anti-Doping Agency for £13m. He made claims that the error-driven process cost him significant financial loss and even a place in the France squad for Euro 2016.

Paul Stewart – Liverpool Players Who Took Drugs

Paul Stewart is not a popular name at Anfield, having made just 42 appearances for Liverpool across a four-year spell. He spent most of his contract with the Reds out on loan with Wolves, Burnley and Sunderland.

He admitted to taking Class A drugs when at Anfield, citing reasons of child abuse at the hands of a former coach. He told Daily Mirror.“I started taking drugs at 27 or 28, when I was playing for Spurs, but it continued after that.

“I relied on it almost daily. I had a bad habit for 15 years, maybe more. Liverpool manager Graeme Souness asked me if I was taking drugs. I just denied it. Someone had told him that it was the case, and he questioned me about it. Marijuana stays a lot longer in the system, in the hair for example. But with cocaine, it goes very quickly and I would take that on a regular basis.

“I was tested for drugs, but it was random and I took the risk. I got away with it. It was a way of blocking out the abuse, so that is what I did. I could get it at any place, any time I wanted it. I don’t know how I managed to perform on the pitch. At times that is why I was not chosen.”

Kolo Toure – Liverpool Players Who Took Drugs

Back in 2011, Kolo Touré was banned for six months following a failed test. It was believed to be because of his wife’s diet pills. Touré was playing for Manchester City at the time and he was the first player in the Premier League since Adrian Mutu in 2004 to fail a drugs test.

Touré claimed he had taken the pills in a bid to lose weight and was unaware of any wrong-doing. The FA eventually seemed to take the circumstances behind the failed test into consideration, however, Touré still had to serve the ban. The player was also one of Liverpool’s weirdest signings.

Michael Kinsella – Liverpool Players Who Took Drugs

Liverpool fans might not have heard of Michael Kinsella but Jamie Carragher and David Thompson can attest to the former Liverpool player’s quality. The Englishman came up as a goalkeeper in the Reds youth ranks but indiscipline and substance abuse saw him get booted out of the club by Academy director, Steve Heighway.

His hopes of turning into a professional footballer got crushed as he went to prison four times, spending 7 years behind bars. He now works as a football development manager for Tranmere Rovers College and is determined to stop youngsters from falling into the same route as him.

“I made a lot of mistakes and that was down to myself, not anyone else,” Kinsella told the ECHO. “If I could go back and change things then I would. I have regrets in my life. I don’t want young lads to wake up every day with regrets like me about their past.

“A lot of players get released by clubs and don’t know what to do next. Here we don’t promise to make anyone a footballer but we do promise that they will get professional coaching and an education.

“If I could go back I would have stayed in football and educated myself along the way. I’d pick that route every time rather than the other one.”

“I don’t blame Steve Heighway,” he said. “Sitting here now, why would you want to have a kid around who behaved like that? Why would you want someone in your team who’s disruptive?

“I played Sunday League with my mates when I shouldn’t have. I was a stupid young kid who didn’t know any better. I wasn’t educated enough. I didn’t apply myself in the right manner. I didn’t achieve what I should have achieved.

“I played for Liverpool Schoolboys, Merseyside and went to Lilleshall, but I didn’t have the right mentality to stay along that path. It’s not always about ability, it’s about mentality and desire.”

Kinsella went on to have spells at Bury and Tranmere before drifting into non-league football and drug dealing. “Some people say it’s about filling a void when footy hasn’t worked out but I think that’s just an excuse,” he added. “I can’t explain it, I chose to do what I did, I didn’t get pushed into it. I made the wrong choice. If I could go back…..”

Premier League Stars Who Took Drugs – Non Liverpool Players Who Took Drugs

Pep Guardiola – Non Liverpool Players Who Took Drugs

I know! You wouldn’t have excepted to hear this mans name anywhere near to drugs, given the type of disciplinarian he is. But Guardiola has been caught with steroid use during his playing career.

After finishing his career with Barcelona as a footballer, Pep moved to Brescia in Serie A in Italy in 2001. Only a few months later he tested for the steroid nandrolone similarly like Manchester United’s Jaap Stam. Like Stam, he protested his innocence only to receive a four-match ban and a €50,000 fine.

Guardiola was furious with what he saw as the tarnishing of his reputation and campaigned against the ban long after he had left the Italian club. He was finally cleared of all charges in 2009.

See Also:

• Liverpool managers who flopped- worst win percentage & least wins ratio stats!
• Best Liverpool strikers of all time (attackers & forwards)
• Top 5 Liverpool players leaving next year