Peru's football captain will miss the two legged intercontinental play-off with the All Whites, having tested positive for a banned substance.
Paolo Guerrero, 33, failed a regulation drugs test after Peru's World Cup qualification match with Argentina on October 5, provisionally suspended for 30 days to rule him out of both legs of the World Cup play-off with New Zealand.
The Peruvian Football Assiciastion confirmed the news in a statement this morning.
"The Peruvian FA can confirm that after the game played against Argentina on the 5th of October 2017, our selected player Paolo Guerrero went through anti-doping tests and protocols established for the South American qualification rounds for Russia 2018," the statement read.
"The Peruvian FA accept and respect the decision made by FIFA and are confident that these issues will soon be cleared and that this process will definitively be resolved.
"Paolo, our captain and leader of the Peruvian national team, has an important role within our side on and off the field thanks to the quality of person he has always shown to be. We value his immense contribution to our team for which the Peruvian FA and country support him in these difficult moments."
Guerrero is Peru's all time leading scorer as well as captain of the national side, protesting his innocence by declaring his failed test is down to medication.
The news is a boost for the All Whites, who will face Peru in Wellington on November 11, before the return fixture in the Peruvian capital Lima on November 16.
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