Three-and-a-half year ban requested for Juve’s Bonucci

August 04, 2012

ROME, Aug 4 — Italy's football federation (FIGC) prosecutor has asked for a three-and-a-half year ban to be imposed on Juventus and Italy defender Leonardo Bonucci and one year for winger Simone Pepe over match-fixing, the federation said Friday.

Both played key roles in helping Juventus win Serie A last season.

Bonucci, who also helped Italy reach the Euro 2012 final, is accused of helping to fix the result of a match when he played for Bari in May 2010. The game against Udinese ended 3-3.

Pepe, who was playing for Udinese in the same match, faces a lesser charge of failing to report the alleged fix. Both players deny wrongdoing. The FIGC said its tribunal aims to reach a verdict before the end of next week. — Reuters