La Liga Match-fixing trial

Brown Toothpick

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http://www.espnfc.com/spanish-prime...ally-getting-serious-about-match-fixing-issue

Basically, investigation is currently ongoing for the Zaragoza vs Levante game 3 years ago, that helped Zaragoza escape relegation. The big news is that Gabi, Atletico Madrid's captain, who was playing for Real Zaragoza at the time has just admitted to taking part in the match fix. Having been called for questioning, he said ""I did what the club asked me to do" according to the Mundo.

20 players have been called for questioning. Other players who took part in that game include Jefferson Montero and your very own Ander Herrera. Although they have not been asked to come in, yet anyway.
 
I don't understand the ins and outs of matchfixing. How would the winning side be involved? Surely more of the losing side would be to throw a game. Or were Zaragoza that bad that they had to be bribed to actually win?
 
Highlights of the game in question.




Gabi scored both goals, the 1st an incredibly accurate free-kick and the 2nd a decent shot from around the edge of the box... Munúa, the Levante GK, played an absolute blinder though, kept out a couple of sure goals.
 
The players who started the match were:
Levante: Munúa, Javi Venta, Roda, Ballesteros, Cerra, Pallardó, Torres, Montero, Muñoz, Rubén y Stuani.
On the bench: Reina, Robusté, Jordá, Iborra, Juanfran, Caicedo, Wellington Silva.
Pedro Rostoll was the coach

Zaragoza: Leo Franco, Diogo, Da Silva, Jarosik, Paredes, Ponzio, Lafita, Ander Herrera, Gabi, Boutahar y Uche.
Bench: Doblas, Jorge López, Lanzaro, Bertolo, Pinter, Obradovic y Braulio.
Javier Aguirre was the coach

The match ended with a 2-1 win for Zaragoza.
The investigation covers bets placed on the match and the possibility that Zaragoza management paid off people at Levante.

The "bonus" payments to certain Zaragoza players may become a tax fraud case - not all of them declared their earnings.
 
I don't understand the ins and outs of matchfixing. How would the winning side be involved? Surely more of the losing side would be to throw a game. Or were Zaragoza that bad that they had to be bribed to actually win?

In the case of the Zaragoza players the questioning would be around three things:
What do they know about any fix.
Did they bet on the outcome, knowing there was a fix in place.
Did they declare to the tax office any bonus they earned as a result of the win/survival.
 
In the case of the Zaragoza players the questioning would be around three things:
What do they know about any fix.
Did they bet on the outcome, knowing there was a fix in place.
Did they declare to the tax office any bonus they earned as a result of the win/survival.
Worrying stuff.
 
This must be why I saw a story the other day saying ''Ander Herrera investigated over match fixing''
 
You wonder if it has happened here? Or is it the usual 'Only foreigners do this' attitude with our media and leagues?
 
This must be why I saw a story the other day saying ''Ander Herrera investigated over match fixing''

Yes, it's thought 20 players have been warned they may need to give evidence, but not all of them are under investigation in the sense that they are actually believed to be involved in any fix or any tax offence. It was Ander's last game for Zaragoza so he may be one of those twenty, but the list hasn't been released.

Incidentally, this is part of a bigger investigation looking at betting patterns, bonus payments and odd financial movements. Malaga-Elche from last season for example is on the list - though a fix there made no obvious (relegation dodging) sense.
 
Highlights of the game in question.




Gabi scored both goals, the 1st an incredibly accurate free-kick and the 2nd a decent shot from around the edge of the box... Munúa, the Levante GK, played an absolute blinder though, kept out a couple of sure goals.


You think Gabi's career is over? From what we know he basically admitted taking part in it.
 
You think Gabi's career is over? From what we know he basically admitted taking part in it.

That's not really what the El Mundo article says
http://www.elmundo.es/deportes/2014/10/02/542d1bf0e2704efc038b4572.html

He says he was given €85k by the club president and then gave it back the same day. Presumably in through his account and then paid back as cash/to someone else? He says he thought the club was trying to hide money from its many creditors so he didn't kick up a fuss.

In other words, if you're out to prosecute him, he may have been used to launder some of the bribe money. If you're not trying to prosecute him he's an unwitting intermediary in the transfer of the money.
 
Of course it's happened over here!!!!!!

How else do you explain Liverpool not winning the league since 1990? :wenger::lol:

#RAWKDelusions

Ferguson installing David Moyes as the Chose One.

How on God's earth has that not been investigated still? Its Ferguson...hardly a squeaky clean figure.
 
A few more details as the day goes on. It's thought that Zaragoza gave 12 of its players payments in the week before the game, amounting to over €1m in all. Gabi says he got his €85k and handed it back to the club president the same day. The others may have similar stories. The cash is then believed to have passed via a kitman to Levante.

For the Zaragoza players one of the questions is did they actually hand back what they were given or were they actually given extra money as a laundry/bonus/silence fee. How did they document/explain the income/expenditure in tax terms? What did they think the club was doing with the money?

Incidentally of the 36 players in the match day squads, 16 are now not in Spain. This may explain why 20 have so far been called to appear in court. It's believed all the players and other key staff have been questioned.
 
I really hope Herrera wasn't involved in this at least not knowingly.
 
It would only be our luck that after finally buying a midfielder that looks like sorting out this massive problem he is found to be guilty of match fixing. Let's face it, Ander is already guilty as sin, our midfield wouldn't have it any other way.
 
He was a kid back then, surely they can't blame him much? :nervous:
 
Wouldn't you expect the team doing the fixing to lose?

The club who needed and got the win were Zaragoza. The allegation is that the Zaragoza president bribed the Levante players to lose.

The money to pay the bribes (maybe around €1m) was not paid directly to the Levante players, nor was it drawn out in one big bag of cash from the club's bank account. Instead, it looks like it was paid into the bank accounts of the Zaragoza players who then immediately handed it back to the club President in a not very subtle money-laundering operation.
 
Will
The club who needed and got the win were Zaragoza. The allegation is that the Zaragoza president bribed the Levante players to lose.

The money to pay the bribes (maybe around €1m) was not paid directly to the Levante players, nor was it drawn out in one big bag of cash from the club's bank account. Instead, it looks like it was paid into the bank accounts of the Zaragoza players who then immediately handed it back to the club President in a not very subtle money-laundering operation.
If there aren't any tax issues or betting issues, I'd imagine it is the Levante players who actually took a bribe and the Zaragoza president who are seriously shitting it. Surely none of the players were stupid enough to bet on their own game. That is illegal no matter where you are.
 
Remember when some Montenegran goalkeeper from some team was paid by bookies to concede 3 goals against Liverpool in UCL few years ago and they only won 1:0? :lol:

And when it was reported that a CL match with an English team in it - but not revealed who - was found to have been fixed, a buch of Liverpool fans just concluded without a doubt that it was us. "It's bound to be United." It was such a hilarious example of how every fiber of their being craves reinforcement of their 'United don't deserve any of their success' narrative. And then not only did it turn out to be Liverpool, but they could only put one past a goalie who had been paid to concede at least three.
 
I don't understand the ins and outs of matchfixing. How would the winning side be involved? Surely more of the losing side would be to throw a game. Or were Zaragoza that bad that they had to be bribed to actually win?
Nevermind. Jojojo explained it already.
 
What do you mean? He was over 20. That's a grown-up.
Well I mean that he is in noway the organizer or among the main culprits, just a 20 year old who got used. Or that's me being naive.
 
What do you mean? He was over 20. That's a grown-up.
It all depends what the president told them about the money and if any of it ended up in their back pockets. If they all stick together, Zaragoza's president could be well and truly stitched up.
 
Just to note that what's underway at the moment is a preliminary hearing. It's designed to decide who to prosecute, what the charges will be and to direct any further investigations prior to trial. The hearings are not public, however given the way El Mundo wrote their story, I'm assuming they have inside knowledge of what was said by Gabi - the remark about being given €85k by the club and immediately giving it back.

The only real quote is Gabi saying outside court: "I just did what the club asked."

Everything else is either based on alleged leaks from the enquiry or speculation.
 
Well I mean that he is in noway the organizer or among the main culprits, just a 20 year old who got used. Or that's me being naive.
Well sure. I'd still think it was weird for the club to give me money for no reason. You definitely would know if you are stitching the taxman. At least you should know. If he didn't keep the money then his naiveness is surely taken into account. It would depend on a lot of things that we don't know about.
 
Well sure. I'd still think it was weird for the club to give me money for no reason. You definitely would know if you are stitching the taxman. At least you should know. If he didn't keep the money then his naiveness is surely taken into account. It would depend on a lot of things that we don't know about.

If Ander used the same story as Gabi then he'll have said he didn't know why the club had to do it but he assumed they were hiding money from their creditors. It might not sound very smart and it might see him hit with a tax bill, but those are the kind of deals that tend to get done outside court in return for evidence against the primary culprits.

Incidentally under tax law in Spain (and the UK) a court can rule that a written or unwritten contract can be ignored in favour of a "what was the actual net effect" contract so "ignoring" the role of the players isn't dodgy dealing it's part of the way fraud cases get simplified enough to actually go to court.
 
Sorry to bump this, but has there been any development?

I admire Gabi as a player, I think he's great. Having only being quoted as saying 'I just did what the club asked' doesn't seem like he was heavily involved at all... after all he scored 2 beauties in that game, nothing suspicious about 'em.
 
This seems bad.

He continued: "In executing this agreement, on 17 and 19 May 2011 the adviser of Zaragoza and financial director of the club, Francisco Javier Porquera, ordered the transfer from the account of Zaragoza the amounts of money to the accounts of Antonio Prieto, Javier Aguirre and these players: Lanzaro, Ander Herrera, Toni Doblas, Paulo da Silva, Braulio, Ponzio, Gabi, Jorge Lopez and Diogo ".
 
This seems bad.

He continued: "In executing this agreement, on 17 and 19 May 2011 the adviser of Zaragoza and financial director of the club, Francisco Javier Porquera, ordered the transfer from the account of Zaragoza the amounts of money to the accounts of Antonio Prieto, Javier Aguirre and these players: Lanzaro, Ander Herrera, Toni Doblas, Paulo da Silva, Braulio, Ponzio, Gabi, Jorge Lopez and Diogo ".
This is all going to come down to how much they knew about the money and what is was going to be used for.
 
I'm guessing he'll get a ban for a few months if found guilty. Didn't Cannovaro's brother get banned because he didn't report that he was approached even though he didn't take any money.
 
I'm guessing he'll get a ban for a few months if found guilty. Didn't Cannovaro's brother get banned because he didn't report that he was approached even though he didn't take any money.
Assume the ban would be global, not just in spain?
 
I'm guessing he'll get a ban for a few months if found guilty. Didn't Cannovaro's brother get banned because he didn't report that he was approached even though he didn't take any money.
Could it not be a lengthy ban? That's what I'm worried of. Like a 7/8 month ban. It would be horrible.