Barcelona-Real Madrid, Fenerbahce-Galatasaray, Celtic-Rangers and Partizan-Red Star. World football’s biggest rivalry in 2011 has just been born as the old ladies were the scrapgoat for Inter in 2006 after FIGC chief investigator Stefano Palazzi’s claim that Inter were guilty of sporting fraud that should have resulted in demotion to Serie B in 2006
This means that the club’s relationship with deadly rivals Juventus is about to get a whole lot worse.
Though the sides have had a very long, very bitter history of run-ins, the stakes have been raised to immeasurable proportions in the past five years, and Palazzi’s words simply bring to a head the deep feeling of hatred that has existed since Juve were first implicated in Calciopoli half a decade ago.
Since the whole case was originally blown open by a series of wiretaps set up by Telecom Italia, Juve have stood their ground in their belief that they had done nothing out of the ordinary and that Inter were among a number of clubs who would have been proven just as guilty as they were. Their cries of foul originally fell on deaf ears as they were demoted to Serie B and forced to start on minus 30 points (later reduced to -17, then -9) for offences that had never previously been punished with penalties of more than a few points.
But finally it seems they are about to be satisfied, with Inter likely to be stripped of the 2006 Scudetto they were awarded retrospectively. Only, how can Juve ever be satisfied? Italian football has changed irreparably in the five years that have followed, and with Inter protected by the Statute of Limitations, the loss of the title they never earned in the first place is the full extent to which they can be punished under Italian law.
When the season start, hope that the fans can behave and avoid any casuality.
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