CorSport: ‘Plea bargain hypothesis’ – Fonseca hoping to avoid suspension after rant

Paulo Fonseca could go down the ‘plea bargain’ route to try reduce the punishment after his comments following AC Milan’s loss to Atalanta.

After Friday night’s defeat in Bergamo, the Milan coach pointed the finger at referee Federico La Penna for his officiating during the game, stating that he directly influenced the outcome of the match with some wrong calls.

The first goal is a foul, of course. There’s no doubt about it. The way the referee led the game, [it was] against Milan there’s no doubt about it and it’s not just from today,” he said.

“I know that the referees have a difficult job. Now I’ll just show what happened. Against Milan it’s always the same, there’s no respect for Milan at this moment. I’m not afraid to tell the truth, like today.

“I’ve always respected the referees’ work, but there are so many mistakes and every week, always against the same ones. The way the referee refereed today is a lack of respect for Milan.”

The Federal prosecutor Giuseppe Chiné has already opened an investigation regarding the comments made and the idea of a one-game suspension for Fonseca is not an unrealistic possibility, as per the code of conduct.

However, as Corriere dello Sport (seen below) reports this morning, Article 126 of the Sports Justice Code allows members to avoid charges and proceedings before the National Federal Court. Milan’s lawyers are considering a plea bargain as a result.

In essence, Fonseca would have to convey that the comments he made were out of line, and then – by admitting guilt – they could get away with a fine, avoiding having to miss any time on the sidelines.

A report yesterday suggested that the Milan leadership are standing with the Portuguese over his comments and were happy for him to highlight the errors.