Italian Scandal: Juventus Manager Has Plea Bargain Denied

Juventus Manager Antonio Conte faces a 15 month ban from Italian Football.

Many fans of Italian football, such as myself, have been nervously watching the scandal that's unfolded this summer over match fixing in the Italian professional leagues.  At one point it was even suggested that the entire Serie A season might be canceled.  It also nearly forced the Italians to withdraw from Euro 2012 after members of the side were implicated prior to the tournament.

Today some more big news came down the pipe, and it effects the manager of the defending Serie A champs.  Last year Antonio Conte led Juventus to an unbeaten season en route to what they count as their 30th scudetto.  Now he faces possibly being banned from Italian football for up to 15 months.

At issue are two matches that took place in 2010-2011 when Conte managed then Serie B side Siena.  Match fixing was found to have taken place in these matches, and Conte is accused of not reporting it to the Italian football authorities. 

For their part, Siena had submitted various plea bargains to the Italian FIGC, and one has finally been accepted.  They will be docked 6 points to start the new Serie A campaign this season.  Conte has been cleared of direct involvement in the match fixing, but has been seeking a compromise on these other charges.  Today the FIGC rejected a plea bargain that would have seen Conte serve a three month ban and pay a fine of 200,000 Euros.  Now he must submit a new offer to the FIGC or he'll face a tribunal.  Either of those options will most certianly result in a longer ban, perhaps up to 15 months as being mentioned by the Associated Press.

The scandal has hit other clubs as well.  Torino, which was promoted back to Serie A,  will start with a 1 point penalty and pay a 30,000 Euro fine.  Lower in the Italian leagues Novara, Varese, Albinoeffe, and Grossetto also will have various point penalties and pay various fines.

Euro 2012: Spain vs Italy

Antonio Di Natale scores Italy's goal in the second half (AP Images)

Sunday afternoon saw the defending Euro champions take the stage in Gdansk as Spain took to the pitch against Italy.  These two teams had also won the last two FIFA World Cups: Italy in 2006 and Spain in 2010.  However, nobody gave the Italians much of a chance in the shadow of their match-fixing scandal, but they put on a pretty decent show in the face of a slightly underwhelming Spain performance.

Spain came out in what announcer Ian Darke labeled a "false number 9" formation, featuring a 4-3-3 type with no actual strikers.  They had some success with this formation in the qualifiers, but it didn't seem to phase the Italians.  The Spaniards had a tough time getting good lucks at goal without a focal point up top. Manchester City man David Silva had the first two looks, sending a drive over the bar in the 9th minute and forcing a save out of Gianluigi Buffon in the 11th.

However Italy got more possession than you might expect an opponent to get against Spain, especially in the first half.  In the 22nd minute Antonio Cassano drug a shot across the face of goal that went just wide of Iker Casillas' far post.  Then in the 36th minute Claudio Marchisio sent in an absolutely blistering volley that would have given the Italians the lead, but he hit it right at the Spanish 'keeper.

The goals didn't come until the second half.  In the 56th minute Italy subbed Antonio Di Natale of Udinese for Mario Balotelli.  Balotelli had just royally mismanaged a look right in front of the Spanish goal, and the Italians had seen enough.  However Di Natale paid immediate dividends.  In the 60th minute Andrea Pirlo played him into the area and Di Natale scorched a shot past Casillas into the far end of the goal to give Italy the 1-0 lead.

Spain didn't panic though, and just 4 minutes later they showed exactly what their players were capable of in the "false number 9" formation.  David Silva slid a gorgeous little pass to Cesc Fabregas and the Bareclona man powered his strike past Buffon to tie the match at 1-1.  

After that Spain finally inserted a striker to try and force a winner against the fatigued Italian defense.  Unfortunately that striker was Fernando Torres, and he did not do well.  Actually, he looked pretty sharp on the ball, but one could tell his confidence in goal is not totally back yet.  His best chance came in the 85th minute.  He and Xavi did a nice little 1-2 that resulted in a great look, but Torres' chip shot not only floated over Buffon, but over the crossbar to consign the defending champs to the 1-1 draw at full time.

International Friendly: Italy 0-1 USA

Nocerino (L) and Michael Bradley (R) fight for the ball. (Getty Images)

Yes, I will admit to being skeptical coming into this one. The USA had not beaten the Azzurri in 82 years of trying. Plus, the Italians rarely lose, and often don't concede goals, on their home soil. I honestly thought that if our defense played well, the best result we could probably get would be 0-0 draw. As a fan of Serie A, I know that when you actually get a chance to score on an Italian side, you better take it.

The Italians did stretch and test the USA defense all day. Even though they were without such key players as Manchester City's Mario Balotelli, they still brought in plenty of firepower. In the 5th minute Christian Maggio sent a ball in to Thiago Motta, and Motta squeezed off a close range shot that forced a great save out of Tim Howard. Tim was a wall for the USA.

The USA did have some first half possession, but had a hard time creating good chances, which is the norm for teams against Italy. Maurice Edu missed from distance in the 30th, and Clint Dempsey forced a save from Gigi Buffon in the 38th. The Italians had bossed the run of play, but the two sides were scoreless at half time, which probably suited the Americans just fine.

Italy came out in continued attack in the second half, but it was the Yanks who drew first blood. In the 55th minute Jozy Atlidore took a cross from Fabian Johnson, then did a gorgeous little lay-off to Clint Dempsey. Deuce fired the ball into the back of the net to give the USA a 0-1 lead.

However, there was a lot of time left to go and the Italians were not going to go gently. The final minutes of the match severely tested the USA defense. Chievo Verona's Michael Bradley was a standout for the Americans in the defensive midfield, helping to mop up any mess. Jonathan Spector and Clarence Goodson came up with some key blocks late, and Howard continued to stand tall. The closest Italy would come was late in stoppage time, when Riccardo Montolivo found some space but saw his shot drift just wide. When all was said and done, the USA held on to the 0-1, certainly to go down as one of our most famous results. Hopefully we can keep it up, especially on the defensive end, through World Cup Qualifying.