The DFB sports court has provisionally banned HSV professional Mario Vuskovic, who is suspected of doping, as part of an injunction with immediate effect. The second division football team is threatened with a loss of several million euros. The young Croatian defender fears for his sporting career.
As the DFB announced on Tuesday, the ban applies until the decision of the DFB sports court in the main. The allegations against the central defender of HSV, who turns 21 on Wednesday, weigh heavily: exogenous erythropoietin (EPO) was detected in a doping sample taken on September 16, 2022 by the Hamburg second division player. Vuskovic has been taken out of training by his club for the time being. The Croatian is also not part of the trip to the USA that is currently taking place.
Via Split to Hamburg
He was seen as a promise for the future. Sporty and economical. Vuskovic was worth 1.2 million euros in loan fee to HSV in the summer of 2021, in the spring the Hanseatic League took the option to buy and paid another three million to Hajduk Split. In the event of a long ban, millions could be lost.
Vuskovic’s father Daniel, his grandfather of the same name and his great-grandfather Marko had already played for Hajduk Split in Croatia. Blessed with a lot of family talent, the youngster moved to Hamburg a year and a half ago. But there he had adjustment problems in the first few months; was hardly used, had to get used to the country, people and the style of play of the North Germans.
But Vuskovic bit through and became a regular player. After his good performance, the Hamburgers took an expensive purchase option of another three million euros. A lot of money for a second division club, which dominated the headlines at the time for having used the tax money made available for the stadium renovation elsewhere. And also a lot of money for the young defender, who is tied until 2025. But HSV also saw the up-and-coming Vuskovic as an investment, whose market value continued to rise and recently stood at six million euros.
Sports physician: “Epo also makes sense for game athletes”
According to “kicker”, there were already loose requests for Vuskovic from England, which were in the double-digit million range. However, HSV planned differently, wanted to climb with the Croatian and make him an established Bundesliga player – also to increase his value even more. This plan is unlikely to work after the doping investigations.
At HSV, who urgently need a replacement in the event of a suspension in the fight for promotion, there is great helplessness: how did this finding come about? Epo causes the red blood cells to multiply, the blood becomes thicker and this increases the oxygen transport and thus muscle building and endurance. It is notorious for athletics and cycling. But Michael Braumann, a sports doctor from Hamburg, told the NDR: “Epo is also useful for athletes. The doping doctor Fuentes, who achieved notoriety, also had some football professionals in his patient file.”
What punishment does Vuskovic face?
The standard penalty for doping offenses is four years. If no fault is proven, the penalty can be reduced. In addition, the public prosecutor is investigating against Vuskovic. She has to, because the anti-doping law has been in place since December 2015. If the offense is confirmed, the Croatian U21 international could also face proceedings before a court of law.
Vuskovic’s entire career is at stake, the opening of the B sample has already been requested by the player. The HSV wants to check at the same time whether there may have been other endogenous factors that led to a positive finding. However, doping experts are unaware that Epo has been mixed in food in the past or unknowingly ingested with drugs used to treat any medical condition. Sports medicine doctor Braumann also thinks it is unrealistic “that someone is contaminated with Epo without noticing it is not possible”.
This topic in the program:
NDR 2 Sports | 15.11.2022 | 11:03 p.m
