Russian star denies using banned drugs

Russia’s new World Cup hero Denis Cheryshev was yesterday forced to deny taking banned substances after his father was reported as saying he was injected with “growth hormone” before the tournament.

The Russian Sport Magazine said Dmitri Cheryshev, a manager who was a former international, made the potentially-damaging remarks in an interview while his son was sidelined during the build-up to Russia 2018.

Use of growth hormone without a medical exemption is a doping offence punishable with a ban of up to four years and Cheryshev was asked about quotes that appeared in Sport Weekend almost a year earlier.

The 27-year-old said: “I don’t know where the journalist got this from. Maybe they didn’t understand my father. I have never used any prohibited substances.”

That was after the deputy director general of the Russian Anti-Doping Agency, Margarita Pakhnotskaya, said the organisation would “study carefully” the quotes attributed to his father.

Cheryshev has been the star of his country’s shock start, his three goals key to recording the best opening two results of any host nation.

He had been a surprise call-up and got his chance only when Alan Dzagoev was forced off in the first half against Saudi Arabia.

Injuries meant he had not played for his country for almost two years when his father was quoted as saying: “He received an injury and, because of the miscommunication of doctors, they began to inject him with growth hormone.”

He added: “It was done so that Denis recovered more quickly.”

Cheryshev snr has failed to respond to further attempts to make contact.