World Cup 2018: Paolo Guerrero scores for Peru after 11th hour reprieve from drugs ban
After having his drugs ban frozen for the World Cup, 34-year-old Guerrero condemned Australia to Group C's basement team
PAOLO GUERRERO scored in Peru's dead rubber with Australia — but the country's captain almost didn't make it to Russia due to a drugs ban.
Guerrero, 34, put Peru 2-0 ahead in their final game of Group C and condemned Australia to elimination.
But if it wasn't for Socceroos captain Mile Jedinak and the other captains in the group, Guerrero wouldn't have even featured in the tournament.
The former Bayern Munich striker was given a one-year ban by Fifa from all competitions in December last year for testing positive to cocaine and metabolite benzoylecgonine.
Guerrero said it had come from drinking a contaminated "coca tea" but he was set to miss the tournament in Russia.
And then Jedinak and Co. got involved.
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The Aston Villa man and other captains of Group C, Hugo Lloris of France and Simon Kjaer of Denmark, appealed on Guererro's behalf.
Ahead of facing Jedinak and Australia, Guerrero said: "As with any footballers, I think we have to support each other and I hope to give him a big hug and thank him personally."
Yet Guerrero's goal in the 50th minute — Peru's second of the game following 36 years without a goal at the finals — meant Australia finish the group bottom with a solitary point.
Social media users were left surprised by the story and suspected Jedinak would be regretting his decision.
After developing through the Bayern Munich academy, Guerrero spent two years in the first team and then joined Hamburg.
He then moved back to South America, playing for Corinthians for three years before joining Flamengo in 2015.
