He won the World Cup in Qatar shoulder-to-shoulder with Lionel Messi, yet just a spoonful of cough syrup turned Alejandro “Papu” Gómez’s career upside down. After a long two-year ban and a battle with mental exhaustion, the 37-year-old Argentine star has finally returned to the pitch.
The incident goes back to 2022. While playing for Sevilla, Gómez took his son’s cough syrup to recover quickly — only to later discover that it was on the doping banned list. As a result, during his time at Italian club Monza in 2023, he received a two-year suspension. Expressing his frustration, Gómez said, “Others take cocaine or marijuana and get only six months, and I got two years for cough syrup! At that moment, football felt dead to me. I even had to see a psychologist.”
Leaving all the darkness behind, Gómez stepped on the field last Monday, playing 32 minutes for Serie B club Padova. The team lost 2–0 to Venezia, but Gómez remained confident. He made it clear: “I’m not here for a vacation; I’m here to take Padova to the top.” His return proves that he wants the final chapter of his career to be written not in the shame of suspension — but in the strength of his own fight back.