Socceroos midfielder Cristian Volpato is in trouble after allegedly testing positive for cocaine during a roadside drug test on Friday.
Police stops and drug test
The 22-year-old was stopped by police twice on Thursday night and early Friday morning. At 1.10am on Friday, he was allegedly clocked driving 109km/h on Sydney's Anzac Bridge — nearly 50km/h over the speed limit. Police conducted a roadside drug test, which allegedly returned a positive result for cocaine.
A secondary oral fluid sample was taken for further analysis. Volpato's international driver's licence was suspended for six months. He had earlier been stopped at 11.05pm on Thursday for driving between 86 and 94km/h in a 60km/h zone and was fined.
Backlash and uncertainty
Volpato, who plays for Sassuolo in Italy's Serie A, had visited local clubs in Sydney after returning from the World Cup but was due to return to Italy for pre-season training. His immediate future is now uncertain.
Background
Volpato made headlines at the World Cup after switching nationalities from Italy to Australia. He had previously rejected a call-up for the 2022 World Cup but later changed his mind. He came off the bench against the United States last month. Volpato said he had tears in his eyes walking out for his debut.
He was cut from academies at Sydney FC and Western Sydney Wanderers before moving to Italy as a teenager, starting his rise at Roma. “Growing up in Australia and playing for the two best academies in Sydney, I got told from both of them that basically I’m not good enough to play,” he said. He added that his mother sold her shop and they leased their house to go for a trial in Italy.
