Lazio and Fiorentina reprieve, Juventus in Serie B

Juventus' relegation to Serie B will stand, but Lazio and Fiorentina were reprieved from relegation and will stay in Serie A.

All the clubs were relegated in an original decision from a sporting tribunal, after a match-fixing scandal hit Italy's top league. AC Milan remains in the top flight, as decided at a previous hearing, but with only eight points deducted, as opposed to15.

Juventus and Fiorentina again would appeal against the latest decision.

Juventus did receive some clemency with the appeals court reducing the points penalty deduction from 30 to 17 next season. They will also have to play three matches at a neutral venue and have been fined EUR 120,000.

The decision to revoke the last two Italian league titles won by Juventus in 2005 and 2006 was confirmed by the appeals court, although no decision has yet been made on who will be declared champions for those two seasons.

The appeal court overturned a tribunal's decision to relegate Fiorentina and Lazio, allowing them to stay in Serie A next season but with a heavy penalty. Fiorentina will start the new season with minus-19 points and Lazio with minus-11 points. Fiorentina must play three matches at a neutral ground, and Lazio two neutral matches. Both also fined EUR 120,000.

Both clubs also had 30-point penalties imposed on their tallies from last season, removing them from any of the European competition slots.

AC Milan's penalty points for next season were reduced from minus-15 to minus-8, and the punishment on last season's points tally was reduced from minus-44 to minus-30.

Italy's two clubs entered in the Champions League next season will be Inter Milan and AS Roma. AC Milan and Chievo Verona will play in the qualification round. Palermo, Livorno and Parma will take part in the UEFA Cup.

No decision has yet been taken on who will be handed Juventus' place in the top flight as Italian rules are far from clear on the procedure.

Should the league table be used as the basis for deciding what club is reprieved, then Sicilian club Messina, which finished third from bottom in Serie A last season, would remain.

With the various points penalties and Juventus' relegation, Inter Milan come out on top of last season's standings but it is not yet clear if the title will be awarded to the club or remain vacant.

While not the change Juventus had hoped for, the reduction does give the club a chance to push for promotion back to the top flight Serie A next season.

Still, Juventus intends to continue to appeal against the decision, raising the prospect that the case could end up in a civil court.

"We absolutely cannot accept this sentence," Chairman Giovanni Cobolli Gigli said in a club statement. "For this reason we have decided to push our case in every possible forum.

"Worst of all, we have been given a penalty which seriously prejudices next season."

The club could turn to the Italian Olympic Committee and, should they remain unhappy, they could appeal to a regional civil court.

Fiorentina also said they did not accept the decision.

"We haven't done anything and we will go down every avenue to clear our name," said club owner Diego Della Valle.

Source: euFootball.BIZ © Copyright 2006 - All rights reserved.