DUNDEE have distanced themselves from the Albanian football authority's investigation into alleged match-fixing by Vllaznia Shkoder during the UEFA Cup qualifying round.
The federation have accused Vllaznia and Dinamo Tirana of throwing first-leg matches in order to hit the jackpot in the European sport lotteries. Dundee won 2-0 in Shkoder and 6-0 on aggregate to earn a lucrative tie with the Serie A club, Perugia, in the first round proper, but a club spokesman expressed surprise at the report from the prosecutor general's office and insisted there was
no impropriety on Dundee's behalf.
''It is news to us. We have had no contact from any football authorities,'' said Niall Scott, the club spokesman. ''We will let the Albanian FA get on with their investigation but, as far as we are concerned, we had a job to do and we did it. Anyone there would see that we achieved the result in the proper manner, in fact [Dundee goalkeeper] Julian Speroni made a couple of good saves and the Albanians hit a post.''
British bookmakers suspended betting on the first leg after noting some unusual betting trends, with reports of co-operation of players on the home side. Several firms also suspended betting on the international match between Albania and Macedonia following a stream of bets on the latter, who won the match 3-1.
''The prosecutor's office is verifying if the charges make up a criminal act according to the Albanian Penal Code,'' said Eva Londo, a spokeswoman for the AFF.
Independent lawyers said corruption charges could be used. Mihal Delijorgji, president of Dinamo Tirana and owner of a sport lotto com-pany in Albania, denied the charges and accused the federation of fixing Euro 2004 qualifying matches involving the national team.
Dundee return to the European stage next week when they travel to Perugia attempting to overturn a 2-1 defeat at Dens Park.
Fabrizio Ravanelli, the club's latest high-profile signing, has had his hopes of a debut a week on Saturday threatened by illness. The former Italy internationalist seemed on course to play against Partick Thistle on October 18, but the 34-year-old, who signed a two-year deal with the club last month, is still short of match fitness and has now been hit with a virus which has also affected Dave Mackay and Beto Carranza.
''It's not the best news for guys like Fabrizio and Beto, who are trying to get themselves match fit,'' said the Dundee manager, Jim Duffy.
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