Italy and Aston Villa forward Nicolò Zaniolo is reportedly facing more serious charges than the others in the betting scandal, as he is accused of organising an illegal betting ring.
Zaniolo, Sandro Tonali of Newcastle United and Juventus midfielder Nicolò Fagioli are all under investigation for using illegal betting sites.
Gossip columnist Fabrizio Corona added Roma wing-back Nicola Zalewski to the list, although he is not yet formally under investigation.
According to multiple sources including La Repubblica, Zaniolo and Tonali assured their entourages and police that they only bet on blackjack and poker games, not on football.
However, news agency ANSA claims that Zaniolo is facing more serious charges than the others, specifically of violating Article 4 of law 401/98.
That is a charge of effectively not just using illegal betting sites, but having an active role in organising and spreading the practice.
Corona and his Dillinger News site insist that Zaniolo’s mother, Francesca Costa, could also be involved in the investigation.
This could in theory be as simple as setting up a group where other players can come together and bet against each other, or something more sinister.
It does stand former Roma and Galatasaray star Zaniolo out from the others.
Professional football players are banned from betting on any sporting event, not just ones they were involved in.
However, again the allegations about Zaniolo are more serious, with Corona claiming he placed bets on Roma’s Coppa Italia game while in the squad.
There are some discrepancies, as Corona stated Zaniolo was “betting on Roma games while he was on the bench,” whereas the recording from his source said that Zaniolo was “injured” at the time, so should’ve been in the stands or at home watching on television.
Ban this clown from the national team, overrated garbage player. 0 goals in 10games for aston villa
agree with Toni, Zaniolo the most overrated Italian footballer of his generation, more deserving talents.
Ban him for 3 years we won’t see any difference to Italy squad
@toni @phil I have to disagree with you both. Zaniolo may be overrated to some, but he’s actually very talented ….. at making his off-field lifestyle gets more coverage than his on-field performance. That’s quite a talent there.