In an interview with La Gazzetta dello Sport, Gianluca Tognozzi, Zaniolo’s attorney, disclosed that while the Italian never placed a wager on football, he might have played poker and blackjack on unapproved platforms. “Nicolò never placed a wager. He also informed me this. It’s possible that he played card games like poker and blackjack on unapproved platforms, without however knowing that they were. We will make everything clear. What do you risk? A fine of a few hundred euros. All this unless there was a recurrence of the crime so great that it is impossible to impose only a financial penalty.”

Although Zaniolo and Tonali have acknowledged that they have never engaged in illicit betting, it has been claimed earlier today that authorities have discovered evidence that suggests they did engage in unlawful betting; this information came to light following a thorough investigation of Fagioli’s phone.