Juve on the brink

THE resignation yesterday of Real Madrid-bound coach Fabio Capello may well have marked the start of the exodus from crisis-hit Juventus.

Publicly, Juventus responded to Capello’s exit with a statement politely thanking him for the work he has done.

Capello was in charge of Madrid when they won the Spanish domestic title in 1997, and a return to Spain was always a strong possibility following Ramon Calderon’s appointment as president of Real on Monday.

Privately though, Juventus officials will know the timing of the 60-year-old’s departure is another savage blow to the club, which appears to be imploding before the eyes of the sporting world.

The 109-year-old outfit face being stripped of back-to-back Serie A titles and relegated to Serie C, if they are found guilty of attempting to fix matches by a sports court in Rome.

Not surprisingly, AC Milan and former Italian president Silvio Berlusconi has blasted yesterday’s recommendations of Italian Football Federation (FIGC) prosecutor Stefano Palazzi as “absurd”.

Although Fiorentina, AC Milan and Lazio are also in the dock in Rome, and face possible demotion to Serie B, Juve face the most severe reprimand.

Palazzi has asked for the club to be demoted to at least the third tier, and the FIGC have stated that any punishments will be handed out by July 9 – the day of the World Cup final.

Berlusconi, who continues to maintain his side’s innocence, said he was “astonished and filled with indignation” by the prosecutor’s recommendations.

“Milan has never received refereeing favours — quite the opposite, in fact. They (Milan) have been the victims,” he said.

“It is hard for me in this absurd and exaggerated recommendation not to see a political motive, which in the world of sport, is completely unacceptable.”

Further to Milan’s possible relegation to Serie B, Juventus could have their last two Serie A titles taken away and be relegated to a lower level than Serie B, while Fiorentina and Lazio could also begin the 2006/07 season in the second division.

“Relegation is a sanction which can only be enforced if any advantages have been gained on the field or the result of a game has been altered,” added Berlusconi.

The corruption scandal broke following the publication of intercepted telephone conversations in which former Juventus general manager Luciano Moggi discussed refereeing appointments with senior officials during the 2004-05 season.

Without the highly-respected Capello, Juve will struggle to retain its wealth of playing talent. If they are relegated, sweeping changes in the playing personnel are inevitable.

The club can boast an impressive eight players to have made it to the semi-finals of the World Cup, including Gianluigi Buffon, Fabio Cannavaro, Gianluca Zambrotta, Mauro Camoranesi and Alessandro Del Piero in the Italy squad.

Other world class stars who would be almost certain to leave Juve include France duo David Trezeguet and Patrick Vieira, Czech Republic midfielder Pavel Nedved and Sweden striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic.

To add to their woes, Juventus’ general manager Gianluca Pessotto remains in a critical condition after a fall from the second floor of the club’s headquarters in Turin a week ago.

The corruption scandal has battered the club’s share price, which has almost halved since the story broke at the start of May.

Relegation would bring severe financial problems through the loss of Champions League football and major sponsorship deals, and Capello’s replacement would doubtless lead out a very different-looking Juve come the start of next season.