Tonali Realizes Conclusive Evidence and Decides to Surrender, Three-Year Ban May Be Halved
According to a joint report by Alberto Abbate and Valentina Errante from the “Messenger Report”, Tonali is on the same path as Fagioli, and is about to surrender to the Italian Football Association prosecutor Gini, admitting to gambling and seeking to reduce the ban penalty.
The report confirmed: Tonali is prepared to self-report to the relevant authorities, and he may meet with the football association prosecutor Gini next week. Yesterday, his lawyer already reached a three-tier agreement with the prosecutor’s office, and the player will appear in court to admit his gambling behaviors in the next few days, just like what Juventus midfielder Fagioli did.
If a guilty plea agreement can be reached before referral, Tonali has the hope of receiving a reduced sentence, while another investigated national player Zaniolo still claims through his lawyer: he downloaded these illegal apps just to play blackjack, although this will incur a fine, it does not constitute a violation at the sports level.
The main reason for Tonali’s decision to surrender is that his phone was taken away by the police during the national team training period, and he realized that the contents in the phone were enough for the prosecutor to convict him. At that time, he would face the risk of being banned for three years, while a guilty plea agreement could halve the sentence.
In addition, after Juventus midfielder Fagioli handed over the phone to the prosecutor’s office, he also reported many details to the investigators, such as he revealed that it was Tonali who taught him to download the illegal betting app, but Fagioli also stated that he didn’t know whether Tonali had bet on football.