Story By: Juan Mayes, Sub Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Golder’s News And Sport
Some of the players accused of fixing a La Liga match -among whom was ex-Manchester United star Ander Herrera – are reportedly considering suing the La Liga President after they were all found not guilty.
Spanish newspaper ‘El Mundo’ report some of the players, who have not been named, “consulted their trusted lawyers asking ‘can I sue Javier Tebas?’”.
La Liga President Tebas, 57, gave important testimony and was a key figure for the case in which 36 players and staff from Zaragoza were accused of participating in match-fixing.
The match was Zaragoza’s 2-1 victory over Levante on 21st May 2011 which saved the club from relegation and sent Deportivo La Coruna to the Spanish second-tier instead.
Tebas claimed a player from Zaragoza revealed an alleged match-fixing scandal that included 1.7 million EUR (1.43 million GBP) in payments to players to assure Zaragoza’s victory.
However, Spanish judge Manuel Aleis ruled there was not enough proof to back the accusations this Monday 9th December.
All 36 accused players were found innocent but former Zaragoza President Agapito Iglesias and Director of Finance Javier Porquera have been sentenced to 15 months in prison as 1.7 million EUR (1.43 million GBP) reportedly remain unaccounted for in Zaragoza’s books.
Tebas spoke with local media about the possibility of being sued by some accused players and said. “Whoever wants to sue me, can sue me.
“Let me just remind you my complaint was investigated by the police and the Anticorruption Prosecution, who were the ones to present the accusation based on the facts they obtained.
“When it was passed, La Liga then presented itself as the accuser.”
No statements have been released by players claiming they intend to sue Tebas.
The case marks one of the biggest match-fixing scandals in La Liga which included players like former Manchester United midfielder Ander Herrera and former Real Madrid star Carlos Diogo.
The ViralTab page is created by and dedicated to professional, independent freelance journalists. It is a place for us to showcase our work. When our news is sold to our media partners, we will include the link here.
