LIMA, Dec. 20 -- Peru captain Paolo Guerrero is free to play in next year's World Cup after his appeal against a one-year doping ban was partially upheld.

The 33-year-old's penalty was reduced to six months by the appeal committee for world football governing body FIFA, meaning he will be eligible to return in May.

"The FIFA appeal committee after taking into account all the circumstances of the case, in particular the degree of fault of the player, considered a six-month period of ineligibility to be a proportionate sanction," FIFA said in a statement on Wednesday.

The ruling came less than two weeks after Guerrero was banned by FIFA's disciplinary committee until November 2018 after testing positive for cocaine metabolite benzoylecgonine.

Guerrero, who plays his club football for Brazil's Flamengo, tested positive to the stimulant after Peru's World Cup qualifier against Argentina in Buenos Aires on October 5.

The striker was given a provisional ban on November 4, forcing him out of Peru's World Cup intercontinental playoff against New Zealand. Peru's victory over two legs earned the country its first World Cup berth since 1982.

Guerrero denied using cocaine or drinking coca tea, claiming he was a victim of food or drink contamination.

Despite Wednesday's decision, the former Bayern Munich player plans to take the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) in a bid to overturn the sentence completely.

【体坛英语资讯：Guerrero cleared to play in World Cup after doping ban halved】相关文章：

★ 体坛英语资讯：Joness agent suspended by US governing body

★ 体坛英语资讯：Turkey, Czech in must-win game, Swiss out of hope against Portugal

★ 体坛英语资讯：Yi debuts for Bucks in win

★ 体坛英语资讯：Five-time All-Star Chris Webber retires from NBA

★ 体坛英语资讯：Federer and Henin win top sports awards

★ 娱乐英语资讯：Posh Spice tops Blackwell worst-dressed

★ 娱乐英语资讯：Mischa Barton says no problem going nude

★ 体坛英语资讯：Hamilton wants to win title on track, not on appeal

★ 娱乐英语资讯：Quickie Vegas wedding for Pamela Anderson

★ 体坛英语资讯：Li Yang sets womens 50m backstroke world mark