Spain to charge 42 with fixing La Liga match

A Spanish anti-corruption prosecutor has asked for 42 people to be charged with match-fixing following a Spanish La Liga game in the 2010-2011 season between Levante and Real Zaragoza.

The 42 people to be charged include the 28 players who took part in the match, which ended in a 2-1 win for Real Zaragoza allowing them to avoid relegation to the Spanish second division on the last day of the season, reports Xinhua.

Former Zaragoza president Agapito Iglesias, former coach Javier Aguirre, who is currently in charge of the Japanese national team, two former Zaragoza directors and some players who did not even play in the game would face the charges.

The anti-corruption judge concluded Monday: "The president of Zaragoza, Agapito Iglesias, as well as the director of the club, Francisco Javier Porquera, and Francisco Jose Checa, agreed, along with the sporting director of the club, Antonio Prieto, the coach Javier Aguirre and the club captains, Gabi, Ponzio and Jorge Lopez, in representation of and with the consent of the rest of the players to fix the game."

"To that aim they established they would pay 965,000 euros to the players of Levante for them to allow the Zaragoza team to win the game."

Among those to face charges are players such as current Atletico Madrid captain, Gabi Fernandez, who put Zaragoza ahead with a brilliant free-kick and Ander Herrera, who joined Manchester United from Athletic Club Bilbao over the summer.

Meanwhile, many others of those who have also been accused are still active in the professional game, either in Spain or other countries.