Bernice Larryoboh
Italian giants, Juventus have been docked 10 points in another twist in the case against the club over alleged false accounting.
The 10-point deduction drops Juventus to seventh in Serie A, six points off a Champions League place with three matches left to play.
Juventus, who has been deducted 15 Serie A points for alleged financial irregularities and false accounting in January, as Tottenham’s transfer chief, Fabio Paratici was handed a 30-month ban from Italian football for his involvement. After claims they had misrepresented their losses between 2018 and 2020, particularly regarding the amount credited to player sales.
That decision was reversed after the Sports Guarantee Panel of the Italian Olympic Committee (CONI) determined that the case should be re-examined.
However, the Federal Court of Appeal have now ruled on a 10-point docking.
The decision was announced shortly before Juventus took on Empoli in Serie A. To make matters worse for Juve, they were trounced 4-1 by the home side with a brace from Francesco Caputo, and a goal each for Sebastiano Luperto and Roberto Piccoli, Federico Chiesa scored a late consolation goal.
Juventus said in a statement: “Juventus Football Club takes note of what was decided by the FIGC Court of Appeal and reserves the right to read the reasons to evaluate a possible appeal to the Guarantee Board at CONI.
“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 penalised with the application of sanctions that seem to take into account the principle of proportionality.
“While not ignoring the need for urgency, which Juventus has never shied away from during the proceedings, it is emphasised that these are facts that still have to be evaluated by a judge.”
However, a two-year suspension has been given to the club’s CEO Maurizio Arrivabene and former sports director, Fabio Paratici. Paratici is now the managing director of football at Tottenham. The former vice-chairman Pavel Nadved has been handed an eight-month suspension.
