CLEARED AFTER THE MOMENT HAD PASSED

Mamadou Sakho was tested after Liverpool's Europa League match against Manchester United on 17 March 2016. The sample contained higenamine, an ingredient found in some fat-burning supplements. UEFA opened anti-doping proceedings and Liverpool made him unavailable for selection. On 28 April he received a provisional 30-day suspension. No final finding had been made.

The suspension covered the decisive weeks of the season. Sakho missed Liverpool's Europa League semi-final and the final against Sevilla. Didier Deschamps left him out of France's squad for Euro 2016, held in his home country. France reached the final. By the time the allegation had been tested, both opportunities had gone.

On 8 July UEFA dismissed the case. Its disciplinary body had examined evidence from Sakho's lawyers and experts from laboratories accredited by the World Anti-Doping Agency. The issue was not whether the test had detected higenamine, but whether higenamine was prohibited under the rules then in force. UEFA concluded that Sakho had committed no anti-doping violation. Liverpool welcomed the decision and said he could resume his career.

The finding did not end the dispute. In public statements issued in 2016 and 2017, WADA continued to describe Sakho as having taken a prohibited performance-enhancing substance. He brought proceedings for defamation and negligence. In November 2020 WADA retracted the allegations and apologised in open court. It accepted that Sakho had not breached UEFA's rules, had not cheated, had not intended to gain an advantage and had acted in good faith. It agreed to pay substantial damages and his reasonable legal costs.

Sakho never played for Liverpool again and moved permanently to Crystal Palace in 2017. Other sporting and disciplinary factors later affected his position at the club, but the matches lost during the provisional suspension could not be restored. The accusation arrived before two finals; the complete public vindication arrived more than four years later. Sport corrected the record. It could not replay the season.

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