Pep Guardiola Says Riyad Mahrez Missed Community Shield over Doping Test Concern

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has confirmed that Riyad Mahrez missed the team's clash with Liverpool in the Community Shield on Sunday because the club were concerned he might fail a doping test.

Mahrez starred for Algeria in the summer at the Africa Cup of Nations, helping his team win the title in Egypt with a string of brilliant performances. 

According to Guardiola, despite the final only being played on July 19, Mahrez was keen to be part of the squad for the Community Shield match. However, City were concerned about the contents of a medicine he took during his time on international duty and decided to leave him out, per Joe Wright of Goal:

"Riyad called me right after being champions with Algeria and told me he wanted to come back in 10 days and play against Liverpool. I said he was more than welcome! But we don't know what he took, the medicine, and that's why today doping control was a risk. The doctors didn't [know], so that's why he didn't play.

"A guy who rested less, but could have played some minutes, but we could not take a risk because the doctors didn't have exactly the medicines or what happened, and we did not want to take a risk. Hopefully, next game against West Ham and the future, everything will be normal."

Per BBC Sport, it's not clear what medicine Mahrez took and what he was trying to treat by using it.

Carl Markham of the Press Association said he was surprised Guardiola spoke so candidly about the situation:

City posted the following clip ahead of the game, confirming the 28-year-old is back in training after his heroics for his country:

On the day, City were able to get by without Mahrez. After a 1-1 draw in normal time, the Premier League champions scored all five of their penalties in the shootout to win 5-4; Claudio Brave saved from Georginio Wijnaldum to give City the edge.

It will be interesting to see how Mahrez fares in his second season at City, as his debut campaign was full of ups and downs.

He missed a crucial penalty in a 0-0 draw against Liverpool at Anfield early in the term and struggled to find consistency when he was given chances. However, Mahrez etched his name into City folklore on the final day of the season when he scored and set up a goal in the 4-1 win over Brighton & Hove Albion that clinched the Premier League title.

The winger should be confident after producing a number of huge moments for Algeria AFCON:

With Leroy Sane hobbling out of the Community Shield with an injury, Guardiola will be keen to have Mahrez available to strengthen his wide positions.

Raheem Sterling and Bernardo Silva are also jostling for spots on the flanks, meaning Mahrez will be desperate to stake his claim for a starting berth again as soon as possible.