The full Ajax squad have made a very public show of support for their goalkeeper Andre Onana, after the Cameroon international was banned by UEFA for a failed drugs test.
Prior to their crunch KNVB Cup quarter-final against rivals PSV Eindhoven on Thursday night, Ajax players took to the Johan Cruyff Area each wearing 'Onana 24' goalkeeper shirts.
In a unified show of backing, Ajax players wore the shirts for the full duration of the warm-up while the club's social media team worked hard to beam the images worldwide.
The 24-year-old himself was present in the stadium, and was photographed watching on from the executive boxes while his team-mates played the crunch tie without him.
Former Roma, Fulham and Everton keeper Maarten Stekelenburg took Onana's place in goal for the match, in which Ajax went on to take a 2-1 victory.
A brace from summer signing Sebastien Haller was enough to seal victory, with the striker now excelling in Holland following a failed spell with West Ham United.
Ajax remain steadfast in the backing of their first choice 'keeper, who they insist has simply been the victim of an innocent mistake.
Recently outlining the situation with Onana, club CEO Edwin Van der Sar spoke to the Dutch media to give full explanation.
'A few days after the UEFA message, he came directly to De Toekomst from Schiphol and we went to his bathroom with the doctor, where we took all the medication and whatever looked like it for examination,' Van der Sar said via de Telegraaf.
'Andre was not feeling well on the day of the check-up and thought he had taken a headache tablet, but it turned out that he had taken a pill from a strip of his wife's medicine, which she had been prescribed after the pregnancy of their first child.
'It looked quite similar in name and strip. And the strips were loose in his locker. It's dumb luck, yes.'
Athletes do not directly benefit from Furosemide, which could work in favour of Onana and Ajax, although it is known as a 'masking agent' used to rid the body of evidence of doping.
'We have submitted our defence and the person responsible at UEFA has checked the reading of Andre and Ajax with experts,' Van der Sar added.
'The experts say that we can go to CAS with hope. It is important that there is a quick verdict. There are cases of athletes who have been suspended for four years, but I also know the example of a cyclist who was caught using the same product and only had a two-month suspension.
The 24-year-old's contract expires in the summer of 2022 and had attracted interest from Chelsea last summer before the Blues signed Edouard Mendy from Rennes.
'In the coming week we will discuss the whole situation, because Onana obviously represents value in the business. He was on the list of many top clubs,' Van der Sar added.
dancdenr
432
i can see this verdict as racist verdict. they have gone through investigations and found out that his claim was obvious mistake why did they ban him? after checking the pills and the supposed accused drugs and found out that it is similar and one could mistakenly taken it because of close resemblance. the board should be dissolved.