As we all know the Calciopoli scandal of 2006 did untold damage to Italian football and the main culprits Juventus were punished by being demoted to Serie B & having the 2005 & 2006 Scudetto's stripped from them, the 2005 one remains unassigned & the 2006 one was handed down to the highest placed team who were judged to not have been involved (which of course was 2nd placed Inter). But now 5 years on the scandal is hitting the headlines again after the investigation has received some alleged evidence that suggests that Inter & our legendary then President 'Giancinto Facchetti' was involved, which as we all know is a ridiculous accusation as the whole footballing world and especially Interista know that Facchetti was one of the most honest & decent gentlemen to ever grace the world of football. So what do these allegations mean for Inter? Well the FIGC will meet on the 18th July to decide what to do, if we are found guilty from the report made by prosecutor Palazzi then the likelyhood is that the 2006 Scudetto will be revoked & join the 2005 one in being unassigned, but the Scudetto isn't the issue here anymore it is more about the personal and damning attack on the deceased Facchetti who obviously cannot repond to these allegations and is having his good name dragged through the mud.
So how did this all come about? This is my opinion on what has caused this and is only speculation on my part, relations between Inter & Juve have always been strained at best with neither side having much love for the other & this only got worse as the Calciopoli came to light & Inter were handed the 2006 Scudetto. Then as part of the investigation in to Moggi's involvement a diary kept by Facchetti that recorded Moggi's dealings with referees was used as part of the evidence that ultimately saw Moggi receive a lifetime ban from football added to the tensions along with the fact that for the years since Inter has gone from strength to strength while Juve have become more of a non entity in Italian football, which of course they blame us for, then in my opinion the final straw came for Juve in 2010 when Inter acheived one thing that they never have 'The Treble' and they are now out for revenge. Palazzi's report is based around some phone tap tapes that allegedly confirm Facchetti was influencing referees, these phone taps unsurprisingly came to light from the muddled investigation from Moggi's lawyers.
This whole thing has now split the football community with the prosecutor, Juventus & even the Gazzetta dello sport pleading the case against Inter & Facchetti while everyone involved with Inter, anyone that knew the Italian & Inter legend & even the high ranking FIGC official Gigi Riva are fighting his corner saying that the allegations are totally disrespectful & outrageous! Can't these prosecutors see how ridiculous this is? Surely if we had been bribing referees then we wouldn't have gone 17 years without winning a Scudetto, who in their right mind would pay money out to fix matches and get nothing back in return?
Gigi Riva was quoted in the press as saying
"All those people who are saying things about him now would do well to keep their mouths shut because Giacinto was a simple, honest man who deserves respect."
Current Inter president Massimo Moratti released a statement saying
"These are ugly accusations. To be honest, I can cut myself out of this, I am secondary, but the fact that Facchetti has been regarded in the way he has is a serious, offensive, stupid thing. Inter fans know exactly what kind of person he was. The gentlemen who will sit down around that table to decide - I'm not quite sure what - know exactly what he was like. I find it totally... There are no new elements, only things that others had already judged to be of little note. I think this is a very serious attack, a heavy attack, on the club: it's unacceptable. Absolutely unacceptable. And I will say this very clearly: Palazzi is wrong. He's totally wrong. This is an attack by the prosecutor and, ok, there's no trial so people can say what they want about this. I categorically refuse to accept it, Inter does not accept it and what makes the whole thing reek even more is the fact that Facchetti has been caught up in it. And I'm not saying that for the sake of it, because it regards somebody who is no longer with us, somebody whom I admire and think very highly of for his honesty."
Inter legend Marco Materazzi has also made his feelings clear
"I have always despised two things in life, more than lots of others: taking it out on those who are weaker than you and on those who can't defend themselves. Well, what I feel now, having spent the last few days reading from the other side of the world hundreds of words, and not only those of federal prosecutor Palazzi, is an immense sense of anger, of disgust. Because I can say that I knew Giacinto Facchetti well and with this feeling I have today, that somebody has tried to sully the integrity he always taught me, it's impossible for me not to speak out. I know it won't change anything but I also know that he can't speak for himself, so anything that we can say - those of us who were lucky enough to spend time with him and know who Giacinto Facchetti really was - we should say: to defend him and his integrity, his honesty, his uniqueness in a world that perhaps didn't deserve everything he gave it. Since he can't do it for himself, I want to defend him with these few lines: I defend his memory, his angelic manners – as Gigi Riva said – alongside all the other people, more important than me, who have already done so. And forgive them Giacinto, if you can." (from http://www.marcomaterazzi.it/)
All we can do though is wait for the trial date on the 18th July and hope that they see sense and clear Facchetti's name even if it means us losing our 14th Scudetto.
These allegations have brought a dark cloud over Inter & the memory of a man respected all over the world and as i've said they can take the Scudetto from us, it's not that important, but do not speak ill of a man that stood for everything good in football and dedicated his life to Inter & the Italian national team, not only that it has made an already strong rivalry between clubs & fans in to an all out hatred which i can see have huge repercusions for a long time to come, rivalries between Barca & Real, Man Utd & Man City and even the old firm rivalry of Celtic & Rangers will not seem so bad compared to the war that is likely to erupt between Interista & Juventini after this and unfortunately i can't see any way back now.
No comments:
Post a Comment