Italy cannot get rid of match-fixing scandals as latest probe saw 19 investigated incl. top names like Juventus manager Antonio and Lazio captain Stefano Mauri.
Rome / NationalTurk – Juventus coach Antonio Conte, Lazio captain Stefano Mauri, Italy defender Domenico Criscito, who is with Italy’s Euro 2012 squad and former Genoa midfielder Omar Milanetto are among 19 people who have been taken into police custody. They have been questioned by police as allegations of a new wave of match-fixing scandal in Italy has erupted.
Italian police state they searched 30 homes of players, trainers and executives of proffesional sport clubs in Serie A, Serie B and Lega Pro, on suspicion of involvement in match fixing and game manipulation. Reports indicate that the scale of the probe on Italian football match-fixing scandal widens as suspects are questioned.
Italian match fixing scandal ‘ Last Bet ‘ widenes with the latest operation
Monday’s operation was part of ‘Last Bet’, a wider investigation into match fixing scandal in Italian soccer which has already seen a number of arrests of current and former Italian players and club officials. The latest wave placed Juventus trainer Antonio Conte under investigation, who is fresh from his triumph in leading Juventus to the Italian Serie A championship for the first time since the club was relegated in 2006, in an earlier match-fixing scandal.
Numerous others have had their houses searched, including Chievo Verona’s Sergio Pellissier.
More than 50 people have now been arrested in Italy in the past year as part of the probe started by judicial authorities in Cremona.
Stefona Mauri : Accused of sporting fraud
Stefano Mauri hided his face from photographers as he was arrested by the Italian police in the northern city of Cremona. Mauri is being investigated on suspicion of sporting fraud and fraudulent association over allegations concerning a match between his previous club Siena and Novara in April 2011. Mauri has been accused of sporting fraud. Most of the footballers accused now play in Serie B or lower leagues, although Omar Milanetto spent five years at Genoa before joining Padova in 2011.
‘Conte’s reaction is that of someone who’s completely innocent and strongly determined to prove his total innocence,’ Conte’s lawyer, Antonio De Rencis, stated.
‘In this part of the match-fixing probe, indications have emerged of manipulation in football matches from the 2010-11 Serie A championship, including games between Lazio, Genoa, Lecce and Lazio,’ stated Raffale Grassi, director of SCO, the police service responsible for the match fixing investigation which continues to rock Italy and dominates the agenda of Italian soccer. Italy was hopeful of his young and fresh generation participating at Euro 2012, which starts in 10 days.
Siena chairman Massimo Mezzaroma has also been placed under police investigation.
Zenit St. Petersburg defender Domenico Criscito is also being investigated, a week before the national team leaves for the European Championship 2012 in Poland and Ukraine. Italian police also visited Coverciano, the Italian national team headquarters where Azzurri Squadra are preparing for a friendly match with Luxembourg on this Tuesday, and searched the room occupied by 23 year old Criscito.
Criscito’s house in Genoa was also searched. Criscito, who did not take part in Italy’s training session, has reportedly asked to be questioned by the authorities as soon as possible.
Action has been taken against 19 people, 11 of whom are footballers or former footballers – 14 have been arrested, three have been placed under house arrest and two others are to present themselves to authorities. Five people have also been arrested in Hungary on suspicion of being part of an illegal international betting ring.
Former Italian coach Trappotoni : Italy is mocked aboard with this match fixing scandal
‘It’s devastating news,’ former Italy and current Ireland coach Giovanni Trapattoni told Gazzetta dello Sport. ‘If the magistrates are doing something, it is because there is some truth in this.
‘I, who have travelled abroad for some time, must say that we give an ugly image of our football.
‘As an Italian, the first feeling is that we are mocked abroad, we are always linked to illicit dealings and are considered mafia members.
‘This only damages us because I can claim to have paid the price for an attitude that affects everyone.’
Trappatoni adds: ‘It’s clear that certain stories provoke anger. But it could also give a push (to the team) to prove the clean face of football.’
Former Lazio and Italy striker Giuseppe Signori was arrested and banned for five years and 15 other players were banned for between one and five years for their part in the same scandal. Former Atalanta captain Cristiano Doni was banned from football for three and a half years last summer.
