Tavecchio to drive merchants from temple

(ANSA) - Rome, June 30 - Italian Soccer Federation (FIGC) President Carlo Tavecchio on Tuesday vowed to kick the corrupt out of the game here, a day after prosecutors said Catania Chairman Antonino Pulvirenti confessed to paying to fix five matches to ensure the Sicilian club did not get relegated from Serie B last season. Tavecchio also backed Italy coach Antonio Conte, saying he was staying in his job, amid media reports that he is about to be sent to criminal trial in relation to a separate match-fixing case.
    "We have to drive all the merchants from the temple," Tavecchio told a press conference with FIGC Prosecutor Stefano Palazzi and Serie B League chief Andrea Abodi. "That's the most important thing. There must be no doubts or problems with this".
    Palazzi said he was set to receive the documentation for the criminal prosecutors and vowed to work quickly.
    The sporting trial into the Catania case needs to be done quickly so next season's fixtures can be prepared.
    The Sicilian side are likely to be relegated to the third tier, Lega Pro, although they could be sent to the fourth level, Serie D. The Catania case is the only the latest in a string of match-fixing investigations to sully the image of Italian soccer in recent years.
    In May police said they had found a massive ring to fix matches in the third and fourth tiers of Italian football for betting scams.
    Furthermore, the Cremona-based Last-Bet probe, which started in 2011, continues after leading to arrests, fines and suspensions for many players.
    Conte reportedly risks being indicted in this case.
    The 45-year-old served a four-month ban while at Juventus at the start of the 2012-2013 season after being found by a sporting tribunal to have failed to report match-fixing during his spell at the helm of Siena in the second tier in the 2010-2011 campaign.
    Conte recently made an apparent U-turn, saying he had no intention of quitting, having previously been quoted as saying he would resign if he is sent to trial.
    Tavecchio gave his backing for that stance on Tuesday.
    "I spoke to him (Conte) this morning and there are no developments," Tavecchio told reporters. "He is staying in his job and will respect his contract.
    "In this country we have guarantees for everyone, including Conte," Tavecchio said. "An indictment is not a conviction".