Random Rants On The Beautiful Game

Scandal causes major upheaval in Italian power structure, sets top players free.

Chris Courtney

By Chris Courtney
SoccerTimes

BRUSSELS (Sunday, July 16, 2006) -- Just days after Italy won its fourth World Cup, a sports tribunal in Rome found Italian clubs Juventus, AC Milan, Lazio and Fiorentina guilty of influencing referees to fix matches in Serie A, leading to an veritable earthquake in the Italian soccer scene.

The judgment is leading to a major shakeup on both the top and bottom ends of the league as a number of teams' fortunes have quickly changed, some for the better and for others (obviously) the worse. There is chaos for sponsors and television broadcasters as multimillion-dollar investments in now relegated clubs are endangered by the upheaval. At the same time, some of the best talent in the league has become available as clubs looks to shed expensive salaries while players with relegation clauses flee their sinking ships.

Despite a call from Italian justice minister Clemente Mastella to be lenient with the clubs after Italy's achievements at the World Cup, Judge Cesara Ruperto handed down harsh punishments to the four teams involved, sending Juventus, Lazio, and Fiorentina down to Serie B, while AC Milan was allowed to remain in the Italian top flight.

Juventus, the team at the center of the scandal, was stripped of its 2004-2005 and 2005-2006 league titles and sent down to Serie B, the second tier where it will start with a 30-point penalty in the standings -- all but ensuring "the Old Lady" will remain in Serie B for at least two seasons.

The man accused of arranging referee schedules and influencing their decisions, Juve's former coach and sports director Luciano Moggi, has been banned from holding any position in Italian football for five years. A few other managers and at least five referees are also awaiting decisions on the length of their bans.

Given that many players have relegation clauses built into their contracts and the loss of revenue from television rights for the relegated clubs, a fire sale of some of the game's top talent is now on the market. The sudden availability of so many quality players is leading to a feeding frenzy among Europe's richest clubs and could lead to a new balance of power in the Champions League, as well as several top national leagues. Real Madrid, Arsenal, Manchester United and the two Milan clubs -- Inter Milan, as well as AC Milan -- stand to make the biggest gains if they can land the players they have targeted. Deep pocketed Chelsea, having already loaded up on talent in the offseason, does not appear too active in this new round of bidding, but one can never underestimate owner Roman Abromovich's appetite for quality players.

Juventus midfielder Patrick Viera has been linked to Manchester United, Arsenal, and Real Madrid, while Czech ace Pavel Nedved appears poised to either move to Monaco or retire from the game. Juventus and Italy team captain, defender Fabio Cannavaro, has indicated that he will stay on at Juve, possibly with Italy star goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon, leaving Juventus with only two of its starters from the previous season. Nonetheless, Real Madrid has its eyes on those two players, in addition to Juventus and Italy left back Gianluca Zambrotta (who has also been linked with Barcelona and both Milan clubs).

Speedy Juve right midfielder Mauro German Camoranesi, whose flowing locks are now familiar to those who watched the World Cup final, is in the crosshairs of both Liverpool and Bayern Munich.

Juve and France striker David Trezeguet appears to be the heir apparent to become a new striking partner for Sammy Eto'o at Barcelona, provided he does not end up at Manchester United, AS Roma or Real Madrid, where he is also linked. The Old Lady's other man up front, Sweden striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, is on the short list of Real Madrid, Inter, and AC Milan.

Brazil and Juventus midfielder Emerson told the Italian media: "No player wants to be in Serie B and I'm no exception." He has been linked to Real Madrid, but may also entertain an offer from either Inter or AC Milan.

Speaking of AC Milan, it will stay in Serie A (and keep its players), but starts with a 15-point deficit in the standings. It has also been stripped of 44 points in the 2005-2006 season, which makes it lose a place in either the Champions League or UEFA Cup, either of which the club can achieve in the 2006-2007 season. Milan also keep its TV rights and might even have a shot at the title in the coming season, especially if it can land a few of Juventus' departing stars.

Lazio and Fiorentina were not found to have direct contact with any referees, but were still sent down to Serie B. Lazio was sent down to Serie B, where it will start with seven-point deduction. There is no word yet if star defender Massimo Oddo will remain with the club or move elsewhere.

Last season's fourth-place club, Fiorentina lost its Champion's League spot and was sent down to Serie B, where it will start with a 12-point deficit. The Viola had only recently clawed its way back from the fourth division (Serie C2), where it was sent after going bankrupt in 2001. Fiorentina's sin this time around was in asking for Moggi's help at the end of the 2004-2005 season to avoid relegation.

Fiorentina's star striker Luca Toni, who scored 31 goals in the 2005-2006 campaign, has been targeted by Tottenham Hotspur. Given Toni's reputation for club loyalty, he may just stay on to make the Viola's stay in Serie B a short one.

As the July 25 deadline approaches for the Italian federation to turn in its entries to UEFA for 2006-2007 Champions League and UEFA Cup, some surprising new names appear. The entries for the Champions League appear to be AS Roma, Inter Milan, Chievo Verona and Palermo with the latter two making their first-ever Champions League appearances.

Entries for the UEFA Cup tournament are a bit less clear due to a technicality. The entries appear to be Livorno, Parma and Empoli, but given that Empoli does not have a UEFA Cup license, AC Milan is claiming the place for itself. It appears the judgment to dock AC Milan by 44 points in the previous season was intended to deny it a place in the UEFA Cup. Thus, Italian authorities are expected to find a solution to allow Empoli to overcome its UEFA license issue.

The judgment has also breathed new life into the fortunes of three clubs which were to be sent down from Serie A after finishing as the last three in league play: Messina, Lecce and Treviso. They will now remain in the top flight where they will be joined by the newly-promoted teams from Serie B: Atalanta, Catania and Torino. Torino, in particular, must be relishing the thought of playing in Serie A while its giant crosstown rival Juventus, must play in Serie B.

The juggernaut of Juventus will be replaced by either Inter or AS Roma next season with AC Milan fighting its way up to a Champions League place. Nonetheless, it is a shame fans will no longer get to see the magic of one of the game's top collections of talent: a Juventus team with Cannavaro, Emerson, Nedved, Viera, and others, take the field again. Their recent achievements have been justifiably stripped away and tainted for actions taken not by the players, but by team management.

Former French international Didier Dechamps has been given the task of brining Juventus back to the top. Given both his track record at Monaco and reputation as a winner, he appears to be the perfect coach to make the most of the team's dire situation. Dechamps knows there are many in Italy happy to see Juventus on the ropes, but is also counting on the loyalty of the fans. "Whoever hated us will hate us even more and whoever loved us, will love us more," he said.

The decision on which team should be determined the Italian champion for the past two seasons also remains up in the air. Both the 2004-2005 and 2005-2006 titles could go to Inter Milan, but the club has indicated it would only accept the most recent one. One option being explored is to not name a league champion for those two seasons.

As the smoke clears, it appears the quality of play in Serie A will take a dip, but the fans will at least have a better sense that the referees are making fair calls. It also appears that Serie A will be a bit less dominated by northern Italian powerhouses for the next few years as more southern teams will represent the league in European play, while even more of them will now be present in the top flight.

Chris Courtney is SoccerTimes European correspondent and lives in Brussels.