Coach detained for match-fixing

Apr 05, 2017 06:00 am

The coach of third division Spanish side Eldense was arrested by police investigating suspicions of match-fixing after his side's 12-0 defeat by Barcelona's B team on Saturday.

Italian Filippo Di Pierro was "arrested and questioned", a police source told AFP yesterday, adding that the investigation is ongoing.

Eldense player Cheikh Saad was the first to point the finger at a number of his teammates and coach.

Saad told radio station Cadena Copa that certain players stood to make "huge sums" of money from bets placed on the match.

The club's president David Aguilar then reported his suspicions to the police and the Spanish football authorities.

Di Pierro was appointed as coach after an Italian investor took control of the club earlier this season with suspicions now raised over whether that investment was linked to illegal betting patterns. - AFP