Steve Bruce has admitted that everyone connected with Hull City is "in a state of shock" after Jake Livermore was suspended for testing positive for cocaine use.
The midfielder, who moved to the KC Stadium last summer for around £8m, will now miss the Tigers' must-win visit from Manchester United next week, and Bruce admitted that the whole club have been stunned by the developments.
"Look, it's still raw with me, like it is with everybody else," Bruce told BBC Sport. "We're all still in a state of shock.
"I'm disappointed for everybody concerned and then you get angry because of his actions and it's been difficult because we've never experienced anything like it before.
"But we have to accept it and move forward."
Relegation-threatened Hull were beaten 2-0 by Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday to leave them two points from safety in the Premier League table.