novelraw Chapter 880 607: Inter’s Sporting Director Becomes a Prisoner! He Will Be the Sole Whistleblower!
Chapter 880 607: Inter’s Sporting Director Becomes a Prisoner! He Will Be the Sole Whistleblower!
Although eight years have passed, Chiwo still clearly remembers the night of the 2016-2017 Champions League final, when the Cardiff Millennium Stadium was illuminated by dazzling lights, as if it were daylight.
Ranocchia's eyes were firm, a moment he later discussed with Chiwo many times — after receiving Tang Long's header, he had only one thought in his mind: score a goal!
The moment the goal was scored, the entire stadium erupted!
The audience went wild, cheering and shouting, with a tremendous roar seemingly about to lift the stadium's roof.
Chiwo stood by the field, the grass beneath his feet vibrating violently with the crowd's frantic jumping, the overwhelming sensation rising from his feet to his heart, like an unprecedented earthquake.
No wonder after the match, Cardiff's local earthquake bureau posted a slightly teasing status on social media:
"A Chinese and an Italian created a 3.1 magnitude earthquake in the UK, luckily without any casualties."
Eight years ago, Chiwo, standing by the field at the Cardiff Millennium Stadium, was overwhelmed with dizziness.
His feet started to sway uncontrollably, a rush of blood surged to his throat, and due to extreme excitement, his breathing became extraordinarily difficult, the feeling of chest tightness spread all over his body.
He instinctively wanted to grab something to maintain his balance, reaching out only to find Guardiola tightly holding onto him too.
The two exchanged glances, Chiwo saw Guardiola's bloodshot eyes, open as wide as bells, full of excitement and joy.
Supporting each other, at this moment, they were comrades in arms, experiencing this thrilling moment together.
Eight years later, Chiwo can no longer recall the conversation between them.
He only remembers, at 93 minutes 20 seconds, after Tang Long assisted Ranocchia with this goal, the match soon ended.
The 2016-2017 Champions League final, where Manchester City faced Real Madrid, ended 2-2 after 90 minutes, the match dragged into extra time!
During the brief rest period, the atmosphere in the stadium remained suffocatingly tense.
Everyone gathered around Ranocchia, worriedly watching him.
In the decisive header, Ranocchia focused only on the match, wanting to cast all his strength into the ball, he wouldn't notice the goalpost was right in front of him?
He did indeed head the ball in, his forehead also fiercely struck the thick goalpost.
"Andrei, how's your head, can you continue the match?" The coach staff anxiously asked.
"It's nothing, professional players' foreheads are made of iron," Ranocchia deliberately smiled, jokingly replying to everyone, his smile carrying a hint of reluctance, "I'm fine, you'd better check the goalpost see if it's broken." It was a humorous remark, but no one laughed, everyone's faces were written with worry.
Tang Long looked at the red spot on Ranocchia's forehead, even wrapped in thick bandages, he could vaguely see the blood seeping through, conspicuously visible against the white bandage.
At this moment, Ranocchia's wife was already covering her face and crying in the stands.
She tightly held her two children in her arms, witnessing her husband injured like a warrior, still his head, how could she not be worried?
Tears continuously slid down her cheeks, her gaze filled with heartache and anxiety.
Guardiola was also very conflicted.
He had already used up three substitution spots within 90 minutes, if Ranocchia couldn't participate in extra time due to injury, Manchester City would have to face the whole 30 minutes 10 vs. 11, a huge challenge for the team.
But could Ranocchia persist? His heart was filled with contradiction and worry.
At this critical moment, Tang Long stood up, decisively saying, "Gracie, give Andrei some hemostatic drugs, and before extra time starts re-bandage him."
Without waiting for Guardiola to reply, Ranocchia stood up firmly from the ground, gave Tang Long a grateful look, then patted his chest, resolutely saying, "Do exactly as he says!" Although his head was a bit dizzy, he still tried hard to stabilize his voice, displaying the resilience and commitment of a professional player.
Tang Long knew Ranocchia would certainly not give up, if at this moment he forced him off the field, and the team lost, he could never forgive himself, better let him play.
Inside Cardiff Stadium, nearly eighty thousand fans were in uproar, it became the loudest area in all of Wales.
Soon, Ranocchia stood on the field again, smiling at Tang Long, "I feel after my head hit the goalpost, my steps are lighter, so don't worry about me, any cross, just aim for my head."
Time flows, eight years have swiftly passed...
Chiwo finished the conversation with Inter's captain Ranocchia, and the morning quickly slipped away.
In the office, he hastily ate a chicken sandwich, then tiredly fell asleep on the couch.
Until 2:30 in the afternoon, his digital watch began vibrating.
Buzz buzz buzz——
[Today's to-do list, item six, attend the trial as a witness, give evidence in the former Inter Milan sports director Ossilio's embezzlement and bribery case]
Chiwo groggily woke up, splashed some cold water on his face in the bathroom, trying to clear his mind.
He happened to encounter the current sports director Materazzi in the bathroom.
"You're going to testify at the trial this afternoon," Materazzi cautiously probed, "I think, Ossilio worked for us for 27 years, without merit but with hard work, you can't deny that, Christian." His tone carried a hint of hesitation and persuasion.
Chiwo said nothing, wiped the water off his face, turned around and left.
Materazzi looked at the mirror, watching Chiwo stride away, and sighed in his heart: "All these years, he's still so stubborn."
Three o'clock in the afternoon, Milan Intermediate People's Court.
This solemn building stands in the middle of the city, symbolizing the fairness and authority of the law.
Accompanied by staff, Chiwo stepped into the courtroom.
The moment he entered, he saw Ossilio.
Ossilio stood inside a railing, surrounded by two tall bailiffs, which made his already short stature appear even smaller and more helpless.
Upon seeing Chiwo, Ossilio's eyes lit up, and he instinctively smiled at him, a smile that seemed to carry a hint of expectation and plea for help.
Chiwo did not look at him, merely nodding in greeting to the judge on the platform.
The judge solemnly read: "The suspect Ossilio joined the Inter Milan football club in Italy in 1998, serving as the head of the youth training department. He began serving as the sports director of the Inter Milan football club in February 2014. Before this, the suspect also worked in Pescia for a year. Witness, are you aware of these details?"
Chiwo nodded and firmly replied, "I am aware."
The judge said, "Good, please give your testimony."
Chiwo took out the statement he had prepared in advance, and the entire jury looked at him.
He took a deep breath and said, "My name is Christian Chiwo, a Romanian, 44 years old, currently serving as head coach of the first team at the Inter Milan football club in Italy."
At this point, Chiwo paused, raised his eyes for the first time to look at Ossilio, staring at him for a full five seconds, as if using his gaze to convey years of dissatisfaction and anger.
"I am reporting with my real name that during Ossilio's 11-year term as the sports director of Inter, he committed numerous acts of embezzlement and bribery."
"For example, ten years ago, he and then Inter Youth Team head coach, Leno, monopolized the youth team's selection standards."
"Children who wanted to be selected had to pay additional tuition fees to Leno, ranging from 50,000 to 100,000 Euros per person, and Leno would share the received tuition with Ossilio."
"I do not know the exact numbers, but according to my rough estimates, the Inter Youth Team sees a turnover of about 15 people annually."
"Additionally, Leno, as head coach of the Youth Team, had advisory rights over the selection for the U15 and U17 teams."
"I am not aware of this aspect, because when I worked with Leno, I was just an assistant coach in the youth team, and I suggest that the judge consider collecting evidence in this regard."
The judge nodded, and the jury began whispering among themselves;
Ossilio's face turned bright red, and he lowered his head.
Chiwo continued, "Moreover, during Mr. Toshihiko's tenure as Inter's president, Ossilio took advantage of Mr. Toshihiko's long absences from Milan and, in collusion with the club's finance and audit departments, signed dual contracts, receiving kickbacks over an extended period, leading to asset losses for Inter Milan Club."
"As far as I'm aware, during the 2015 summer transfer window, when Chinese player Tang Long transferred to Manchester City, Ossilio privately received over 5 million Euros in illegal commission in exchange for Manchester City's priority transfer rights, keeping competitive information advantages over Manchester United, Bayern, Real Madrid, and other clubs."
"The same was true in the case of Ranocchia's transfer, as far as I know..."
After giving his testimony, Chiwo left the courtroom.
It was May, and the Milan sky was clear, with the sun blazing like fire.
The scorching rays whipped down on Chiwo's head, but a coolness swept through his heart, making him feel unprecedentedly relaxed.
"Everything is your own doing, Ossilio. Your generation of Italian professional managers, who among you isn't serving your own interests at the expense of others? Even if others are unwilling to testify, as long as I'm here, I will definitely report you!" Chiwo said firmly in his heart.
The news of Ossilio's arrest shocked the entire Italian football world.
As a decade-long sports director of a giant club like Inter, Ossilio had vast connections within Italy.
Many industry insiders were his friends.
Even if they weren't friends, they were somewhat entangled with him and didn't want to attend as witnesses.
For instance, former Inter head coaches Mancini, Pioli, and others declined the Milan court's invitation and didn't come.
Throughout the Italian football circle, Chiwo was the only one attending as a witness.
He walked the streets, looking at the bustling city scenes around him, faintly sensing that the reckoning with Ossilio would cause an unprecedented earthquake in Italian football, much like the 2005 Calciopoli scandal.
This was something Chiwo was glad to see.
Those things poisoning football should never have existed in it.
Why has Italian football continued to decline, not only falling far behind the Premier League and La Liga but also trailing the Bundesliga, and even, to some extent, Ligue 1?
The reason is well known to Chiwo, who has been in Italian football for half his life.
He was willing to cooperate with the prosecution and be the whistleblower breaking this façade.
Chiwo was on his way home when he received a call from Tang Long.
"How are you in Madrid, Tang? We haven't seen each other in four years, have we?"