Soccer-Juventus director Paratici under investigation over Suarez case-statement

Serie A champions Juventus on Friday said their sporting director Fabio Paratici had been placed under criminal investigation over an alleged attempt to speed up efforts to obtain Italian citizenship for Uruguay striker Luis Suarez.

Serie A champions Juventus on Friday said their sporting director Fabio Paratici had been placed under criminal investigation over an alleged attempt to speed up efforts to obtain Italian citizenship for Uruguay striker Luis Suarez. Suarez, whose wife is of Italian descent, passed an exam in September at the University for Foreigners in Perugia as part of the naturalisation process needed for his potential transfer to the Serie A champions.

Juventus, who hoped to sign him from Barcelona, needed him to acquire citizenship to avoid exceeding their permitted quota of non-EU players, but suspicions were quickly raised in the media that he was given preferential treatment. Juventus denied any wrongdoing, saying it was confident investigations would soon clarify Paratici's position.