Among the long, dismal list of things you do not want attached to your players, implication with match-fixing allegations must be right up near the top.
So Montreal Impact officials are surely having some nervous-tummy time over this looming unpleasantness with DP striker Marco Di Vaio.
The Impact’s most handsomely compensated man left for Italy on Thursday for a second round of questioning in hearings into an Italian match-fixing scandal.
He will definitely miss Saturday’s match at Stade Saputo against Philadelphia. The bigger worry is whether it could turn into something more. As CBC Sports in Canada reports: “Di Vaio may be suspended up to six months if found guilty by a disciplinary committee of the Italian soccer federation (FIGC) for failing to report fraud in connection with a 2011 match in which Bologna lost 4-0 at home to Bari. Any suspension would likely include play in MLS.”
Before Impact fans decide how much worry time they should devote here, they should consider that Bologna captain Daniele Portanova faces a three-year ban for his part in this ugliness.
Yikes! But on the other hand, Impact teammate Matteo Ferrari told CBC Sports that should be OK.
“I talked with him and he said he didn’t do anything, so he’s very fine,” Ferrari told the news service.
Oh! Well there you go. The man said he didn’t do anything, so, yeah ...