Juventus fear at least 20 Serie A points docked over wages

The Corriere dello Sport claims that FIGC prosecutors will ask to dock Juventus at least 20 Serie A points over the highly-controversial payment of wages during the pandemic.

The Bianconeri were already penalised by 15 points for artificially inflating transfer fees to boost capital gains, a decision they are currently appealing to the CONI.

Before that verdict, many expected the biggest damage to come from the so-called ‘wage manoeuvres’ uncovered in the Prisma investigation, and that may well be the case.

According to the Corriere dello Sport, the FIGC prosecutors will request at least a 20-point penalty for Juventus when that goes to trial, with a deferment expected in March.

Essentially, Juventus released formal statements announcing that the players had agreed to forego four months of their wages to help the club during the pandemic.

However, wiretaps and WhatsApp messages confirmed by players including Matthijs de Ligt and Mattia De Sciglio instead show that the squad and club were always aware this was not entirely true.

They would give up one month of their wages and receive the rest in different forms, such as bonuses and sponsorship deals, effectively paying them under the table to help balance the official books.

That includes €19.9m that Cristiano Ronaldo reportedly still wants from the club.

While the capital gains issue is rather more difficult to prove – as there is no independent way of verifying the value of a player on the transfer market – the wages provided more of a paper trail.