The on-loan Aston Villa midfielder is just one of a few Italian players to be caught up in football’s latest gambling scandal
Nicolo Zaniolo, an Aston Villa midfielder who is now on loan, has had a challenging week due to rumors that he may be connected to the current Italian betting scandal.
The 24-year-old, Juventus player Nicolo Fagioli, and Newcastle United’s Sandro Tonali have all made headlines; the latter was previously given a seven-month football ban on Tuesday. What Zaniolo and Tonali’s future plans are are still unknown. On Sunday, the Villans will play West Ham at Villa Park in an attempt to build on their strong start to the new season under Unai Emery.
It is unclear if Zaniolo will play against the Hammers this week; Villa has not yet released a statement regarding the probe.
BirminghamLive examines what we currently know about the matter and how any consequences would effect the midfield player and Villa going ahead as it develops.
What accusations do they make against Zaniolo?
Last Thursday, it was revealed that the Turin Public Prosecutor’s Office had opened an inquiry, leading to the withdrawal of both Tonali and Zaniolo from the Italian squad. At the time, the Italian news agency ANSA stated that both players had been questioned as a part of an investigation into betting.
“The Federation announces that this afternoon the Turin Public Prosecutor’s Office has conducted investigations into players, Sandro Tonali and Nicolo Zaniolo, who are currently training with the national team at the Coverciano Federal Training Centre,” stated a statement released by the Italian Federation on Thursday.
“Regardless of the nature of the events, considering that the two players are not in the necessary condition to face the matches scheduled for the next few days, the Federation has decided, also for their protection, to allow them to return to their respective clubs.”
Who else is alleged to have been involved?
In a report published by the Daily Mail earlier this week, the outlet claimed that Italian officials had been investigating up to 40 players.
The trio of Zaniolo, Tonali and Fagiolo are said to have just been a tip of the iceberg with many more players set to be investigated in the coming weeks. The agent of Newcastle star Tonali has already confirmed the 23-year-old is battling a gambling addiction.
Could Zaniolo be facing a ban from football?
It remains to be seen if the allegations against the on-loan Villa man are true or not.
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