The latest punishment for false accounting dropped Juventus
from second spot in Serie A to seventh.
It left the Bianconeri five points behind AC Milan, which
moved into fourth place in Serie A and the final qualifying spot for the
Champions League.
Juve’s chances of qualifying for Europe’s premier club
competition would still have been in its own hands, as it plays Milan next weekend.
But — shortly after the sentence — Massimiliano Allegri’s team lost at Empoli
4-1.
There are two rounds remaining.
Juventus said in a statement that it could appeal the
penalty, dragging the situation out until after the end of the season.
“What was established by the fifth instance of judgment in
this matter, which began more than a year ago, arouses great bitterness in the
club and in its millions of supporters who, in the absence of clear rules, find
themselves extremely penalized with the application of sanctions that do not
seem to take into account the principle of proportionality,” Juventus added.
“While not ignoring the need for urgency, which Juventus has
never shied away from during the proceedings, it is emphasized that these are
facts that still have to be evaluated by a judge.”
Juventus was handed a 15-point penalty in January and
several board members were also banned from soccer activities, including former
president Andrea Agnelli.
The points deduction was suspended last month on an appeal
to the country’s highest sports court within the Italian Olympic Committee and
referred back to the soccer federation’s appeals court for a new trial.
That took place on Monday. During the three-hour hearing,
federation prosecutor Giuseppe Chiné requested an 11-point penalty for
Juventus. He had asked for nine back in January.
Chiné also requested eight-month bans for seven former
Juventus directors, including Pavel Nedvěd, but they were cleared on Monday.
Agnelli and three others had their appeals rejected last
month.
The Juventus board resigned en masse in November following
an investigation by Turin public prosecutors into alleged false bookkeeping.
A sports trial in the case was then reopened based on
information from the Turin prosecutors, leading to the points deduction.
Juventus had initially been cleared by the sports court the previous April.
The prosecutors in Turin have also charged Juventus, Agnelli
and 11 others with false communications by a company listed publicly on the
Milan stock exchange, obstructing watchdog agencies, false billing and market
manipulation.
Juventus’ legal troubles deepened still further last week
after the Italian soccer federation also charged the club and seven former team
directors with alleged fraud for the way they handled player salary cuts during
the coronavirus pandemic. -AP
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