‘It’s fair’ – Athletic Club star responds to his 10-month ban | OneFootball

Athletic Club star Yeray Álvarez has spoken publicly for the first time regarding his lengthy ban from football.

Both Yeray and Athletic were of course dealt a heavy blow earlier this week.

This came amid confirmation that the defender has been hit with a heavy punishment on the part of UEFA.

Yeray was for his part informed that he failed a routine drugs test earlier this summer.

The test in question came in the aftermath of Athletic’s Europa League semi-final first-leg meeting with Manchester United back in early May.

In a lengthy ensuing statement released across his social media platforms, the 30-year-old pled his innocence, assuring that the ‘banned substance’ found came owing to an alopecia medicine, made use of in the aftermath of his treatment for testicular cancer.

This explanation, though, did not prove sufficient for Yeray to avoid a heavy sanction.

As per a statement released by Athletic Club on Monday:

‘UEFA rules that Yeray committed an error and imposes a ten-month sanction on him. The sanction begins to count from June 2 of last year, since Yeray voluntarily submitted to the provisional suspension, so he will be able to return to competing starting April 2, 2026.’

And as alluded to above, with the dust having now settled on the situation, Yeray has himself spoken out.

In a lengthy statement cited by Mundo Deportivo, the 30-year-old confirmed that, though his transgression was a complete accident, he sees the punishment as ‘fair’:

“I have been banned for ten months by UEFA for taking a prohibited substance, but I want to make it clear that I never knew I was taking a prohibited substance. I want to make that clear, and that I have not taken anything to enhance athletic performance or anything like that.”

“In 2016, I started chemotherapy (to treat a testicular tumor). It was a tough time. One of the biggest fears in these cases was hair loss. After going through that process, the oncologist told me there was a certain treatment for alopecia, and since 2022, I’ve been taking a pill and a spray at night. From the very beginning, I mentioned it to Josean (Lekue , the club’s head of medical services). I gave him all the information so that everything would be in order and there wouldn’t be any problems. I’ve taken it to this day and continue to take it.

“My partner Naia started a very similar treatment in December 2024, almost identical to mine. In the week before playing against Manchester (at San Mamés), when I went to take my pills I realized I didn’t have any. I went to get the spare bottle and didn’t have any. Due to stress and to stick to my nightly routine, I decided to take my partner’s pill thinking it had the same thing as mine, without knowing that it also had another substance that was prohibited.

“First, I want to apologize to Athletic Club, the fans, and my teammates. It’s been a difficult few months. You overthink a lot of things. I want to apologize to everyone; in a way, it involves and commits you. From the very beginning, I made it clear to the club that I wouldn’t be receiving anything at all. My salary won’t exist; I work for the club, and when someone doesn’t work that way, it should be that way I knew it was a human error. That was my calmness from the very beginning.

“We knew the criteria used in these situations. Ten months seemed fair to me. You did what you were supposed to do, the rules are there to be followed, and you (referring to himself) haven’t. I’ve already served a certain amount of time (more than three months because it started counting on June 2nd when I accepted the provisional suspension). Now I have to prepare for what’s next. I have to thank everyone for their support. People support you unconditionally. When I accepted it was a mistake, I took it with much more positivity.”

Conor Laird – GSFN