Celta's Giovanella suspended for two years
(AP)
Updated: 2005-09-28 21:48

Celta Vigo midfielder Everton Giovanella was suspended for two years after testing positive for the banned anabolic steroid nandrolone, the Spanish soccer federation said Wednesday.

Giovanella failed a doping test following Celta's match with Pontevedra on Dec. 19, 2004. The federation rejected Giovanella's defense that he had produced the substance naturally.

"I'll keep on fighting to prove my innocence," Giovanella told newspaper La Voz de Galicia. "I don't know who is trying to get me to stop me playing soccer."

The 35-year-old Brazilian gave a reading of 3.7 nanograms per milliliter of 19-Norandrosterone, a substance produced naturally in small quantities but which appears in larger amounts following nandrolone use. The permitted level is two nanograms per milliliter.

Celta has made an impressive return to the first division this season and leads the standings after five games.

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