Spanish justice probes UEFA Cup match fix claim (2nd Roundup)

Oct 1, 2008, 15:10 GMT

Madrid - Spanish judicial authorities are investigating the possibility that last season's UEFA Cup semi-final between Bayern Munich and Zenit St Petersburg could have been rigged.

A spokeswoman for the National Court confirmed a report in Wednesday's El Pais and ABC dailies, but said no details could be given on an ongoing investigation.

According to the newspaper reports, the investigation has followed a claim by a suspected Russian criminal boss, Gennady Petrov, in Spain.

Petrov, arrested earlier this year in Majorca, had been heard in a tapped telephone conversation boasting Zenit's success in the semi-final had been bought 'for 50 million.' No currency was mentioned.

Petrov is suspected of being the head of the Russian mafia clan Tambovskaya in St Petersburg, Spanish reports said.

His alleged right-hand man, Leonid Khristoforov, who has also been arrested, had reportedly bragged that he had forecast the outcome of the second-leg match which Zenit won 4-0

Zenit beat Bayern Munich 5-1 on aggregate, including the 4-0 win over the German side in Russia on May 12, the highest Bayern defeat in Europe for 31 years.

Zenit then went on to win the final by beating Glasgow Rangers 2-0 in Manchester.

According to the reports, Spanish investigative magistrate Baltasar Garzon has informed German prosecutors of the investigation.

However Munich prosecutors said they were not aware of any investigation while Bayern said in a statement that it too knew nothing of the claims.

'Bayern Munich knows as little about this suspicion as the Munich prosecutors,' said the club. 'We will attempt to obtain all information available about this incident.'

There has been no previous indication the tie could have been manipulated.

Football's European governing body UEFA has set up a new unit to investigate the possibility of match-fixing by betting syndicates.

Twenty-five UEFA Cup matches, all from preliminary rounds, have come under review as a result of irregular betting patterns. Last season's semi-final involving Zenit and Bayern had not been one of those under investigation, El Pais reported.