Soccer-Italian appeal court reduces defender Izzo's ban for match-fixing

Italy's Federal Appeal Court on Friday reduced Genoa defender Armando Izzo's 18-month ban and 50,000 euro ($55,940.00) fine over match-fixing allegations to six months and 30,000 euros.

The 25-year-old was sanctioned for failing to disclose a match-fixing agreement when he was playing for US Avellino 1912 in the Italian Serie B (second-tier) in the 2013-14 season.

"It was a hard year, a year in which I suffered a lot, but I was never afraid, I have always been confident in my honesty and I have never stopped fighting for the truth..." Izzo wrote on his Facebook page after the result of the appeal.

Izzo was called up to the Italian national squad last November but did not make the team.

Genoa, fifth from bottom in Italy's Seria A and only two points off the relegation zone, face ninth-placed Torino and second-placed AS Roma in their last two games of the season. ($1 = 0.8938 euros)

(This article has not been edited by DNA's editorial team and is auto-generated from an agency feed.)