Mutu hit by double blow - report

Shamed Chelsea striker Adrian Mutu is reported to have been charged by the Football Association and suspended by the club.

According to reports in The Sun today, the 25-year-old Romanian captain has been charged with taking a banned substance after failing a random drug test last month.

Mutu originally admitted to taking cocaine but later claimed he’d taken a substance that would help improve his sexual performance.

Mutu has also agreed to undergo counselling sessions as part of a rehabilitation programme in a bid to escape a long-term ban from the game.

Following the FA’s move, Chelsea are alleged to have suspended the player, who earns around £60,000 (€86,000) a week, pending the outcome of a hearing. No date has yet been set for the hearing but Mutu could get a ban anywhere between six months and two years.

The FA could also choose to impose a lengthy rehabilitation instead of an outright ban but that is unlikely given the sport’s crackdown on the use of drugs.

Mutu has not started a Premiership match all season and Chelsea’s suspension, if confirmed, will suggest that manager Jose Mourinho wants rid of the player they signed for £15.8m (€22.7m) from Parma.

Mutu failed a random drug test carried out by UK Sport last month and earlier this week Sports Minister Richard Caborn called for the player to be hit with a two-year ban in line with the World Anti-Doping Agency’s disciplinary code.

The Romanian has a reputation for living a playboy lifestyle and has been involved in sex scandals, and car chases with police back home.

He also fell out with Mourinho over his decision to play for his country against the Czech Republic in their recent World Cup qualifier. Mourinho told the Romanians that Mutu was unfit but the player defied his club and played the full 90 minutes.

He was fined two weeks wages on his return to England and the player claimed he almost hit Mourinho during a stormy meeting – an allegation denied by the Chelsea boss.