Fortaleza repudiates John Textor’s accusations and promises “appropriate legal measures” | strength

Textor says he discovered Palmeiras game in result manipulation investigation

In a statement, Tricolor do Pici repudiated the statements, in addition to pointing out that they tarnish the institution’s century-old reputation and cause serious damage to the club’s image.

The businessman has been claiming, for months, that Palmeiras has benefited from manipulation schemes, without providing evidence.

Last year, Botafogo was surpassed by the Alviverde team in the final stretch of the Brazilian Championship after leading most of the championship. Palmeiras ended up champion.

On his official website, Textor gave an overview of what he sees as a match-fixing scandal. Based on reports made by artificial intelligence, the American stated – without proof – that two Palmeiras games in recent years were manipulated.

One of them was Palmeiras 4 x 0 Fortaleza in the 2022 Brasileirão. In this game, the São Paulo club entered the field with the title already guaranteed. According to a report commissioned by Textor, four players from the Ceará team “exceeded limits that would establish clear and convincing evidence of game manipulation”.

“Fortaleza vehemently repudiates the statements made by Mr. John Textor, owner of SAF do Botafogo, who accuses tricolor athletes of being involved in a results manipulation scheme.

We regret that these statements made, without presenting any evidence, could tarnish the reputation of our century-old institution, thus causing damage to the club’s image. We do not believe in this way of playing football, we prefer the path of truth, and if Mr. John Textor has evidence, let him present it so that the guilty parties can be punished.

Fortaleza Esporte Clube hopes that everything will be clarified legally, and if necessary, it will take all appropriate legal measures.”