© EuroFootball.com
On Friday, the meeting of the Italian Football Federation dealt a harsh blow to several Italian clubs. The decision made during the meeting was a merciless verdict: due to financial problems, four "Serie A" and "Serie B" clubs are not allowed to play.
Among those removed were teams like "Serie A" and , as well as "Serie B" clubs "Salernitana" and .
The leaders of both clubs removed from "Serie A" claim they intend to appeal, so the final decision may only be revealed just before the start of the season on August 28.
"I am not an optimist, but a realist. I am convinced that we have everything we need to play in "Serie A," said the president of "Torino."
In addition to the four mentioned clubs, many other clubs from lower Italian leagues were also removed.
If the appeal of "Messina" is not successful, their place in "Serie A" will likely be filled by "Bologna," who dropped from the top league after losing a playoff to "Parma." Meanwhile, the place of "Torino" in the highest Italian league would likely be taken by "Treviso," who finished fifth in "Serie B."
"Messina" and "Torino" are not the first Italian clubs to face financial problems. Previously, the legendary club "Napoli" went bankrupt and was re-established, the two-time Italian champions "Fiorentina" went bankrupt before the start of the 2002-2003 season, and recently "Parma" almost suffered a financial collapse due to the problems of their owners, the "Parmalat" conglomerate.
