🚨💥 Italian stars interviewed by Police as betting scandal erupts
Clubs plunged into crisis as huge bans loom if allegations are proven
Seemingly out of nowhere, Italian football has been plunged into crisis with the news that some of its young stars have been allegedly implicated in illegal betting.
Newcastle United’s major summer signing, Sandro Tonali, and Nicolo Zaniolo, on loan at Aston Villa from Galatasaray, were the first two players to be named, followed by Juventus’ 22-year-old Nicolo Fagioli.
It’s known that the former pair have already been spoken to by the Police and were removed from the Italian national team training camp where they were preparing for the October matches.
‘Obviously, the situation is not easy at all for the players, for the national team and for their clubs, all of whom are waiting for the most important part of the story - to see how the process and investigation will pan out,’ Fabrizio Romano wrote in his exclusive Daily Briefing column.
With more players expected to be named over the coming days, this could have a huge effect on the make up of the Italian national team, not to mention clubs Europe-wide may need to tweak their squads to compensate for any ban that could be imposed on the players concerned.
Romano was, however, keen to point out that no one has been charged at this stage.
‘Let me clarify that at the moment this is an allegation only, so let's wait and understand what really happened before vilifying the players. Let the police get on with doing their job themselves,’ he continued.
‘[…] Of course it's very sad, and especially sad when those players are going to represent the national team and are then forced to leave the training camp after speaking to the police.
‘It does look very bad at this stage and I will, for sure, keep you posted on this huge, important story.’
What’s clear is that such big news is going to remain front and centre in the media over the coming days and weeks, and one can only imagine the negative effect that this will have on all concerned.
What’s your opinion on the Italian betting scandal? Should the players have the book thrown at them if they’re found guilty? Let us know in the comments.
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