Serbian footballer Nenad Savic has been suspended by Israeli club Beitar Tel Aviv-Ramle for being convicted in Switzerland of selling cocaine.
Club president Shmuel Schnitzer said on Thursday that Savic came clean the day before.
Savic, a former Switzerland Under-21 player, was handed a three-year jail sentence by a Zurich court on Monday and ordered to serve at least 10 months in custody. He was convicted of selling 1.2 kilograms (2.65 pounds) of cocaine in late 2008-early 2009.
An Interior Ministry official said Savic entered Israel on a tourist visa and authorities were unaware of the drug case.
The 31-year-old Savic trained as normal on Tuesday, and it was only after the Associated Press informed club CEO Shai Balali about the conviction that Savic told the club.
Although he was given permission from Beitar Tel Aviv-Ramle to travel to Switzerland, he did not mentioned the court case, telling Balali and Schnitzer the trip was for personal family reasons.
''When he went to Switzerland we had no idea about such horrible circumstances,'' Shnitzer told the AP. ''The day he came back we received the information from yourself and others. I called him and met him on Wednesday although he wanted to go to training.
''Before I opened my mouth he said 'I understand everything, I am immediately suspending myself from the team. You don't need to tell me anything.' He told me there is no conviction yet, nothing is final, there is no verdict or sentence and he should get all the material within a week. He says he is innocent, it is a misunderstanding. He thinks he will not be convicted.''
Schnitzer said the club didn't want to have anything to do with anyone involved in illegal drugs.
''Even the fact that he is related to (a drug case) tells me he has something to do with drugs,'' he said. ''We are a sports team and I want the players to be completely clean.''
Schnitzer said he was particularly disappointed by the attitude of Savic, who moved to Beitar Tel Aviv-Ramle from Israeli Premier League club Ironi Kiryat Shmona in January.
''If I was him I would have told me everything in the first place. These things cannot stay a secret,'' he said. ''I was surprised and disappointed he didn't disclose everything. He is a sportsman and professional. Until now he has been 100 percent professional.''
Savic was not available for comment Thursday.
