The Old Lady Speaks Podcast, Episode 177: Nicolo Fagioli has been doing some betting

You wanted a quiet international break, huh?

Instead, you got the opposite of a quiet international break. You got something a lot like the last international break — and that is nothing that involves something good happening.

Last month it was Paul Pogba and his failed doping test. This time around, it involves Nciolo Fagioli being the first name in a gambling scandal in Italy that seems to only grow by the day. The desire for an international break to be quiet and unlike that of the break in September, well that disappeared quickly before we even reached Italy’s first Euro 2024 qualifier over the weekend.

Goodbye, peace and quiet.

Hello to the latest headline-grabbing off-field issue involving somebody at Juventus.

It just goes on and on, my friends. When some of this will stop ... we have no freakin’ idea.

On Episode 177 of The Old Lady Speaks Podcast, we discuss:

• The one takeaway from the first week of the October international break — we are so very tired of all of this and just want to talk about games and only games.
• To cheer things up, Sergio has some very exciting personal news to share!
• OK, then back to the not-so-good news: Nicolo Fagioli was the first name to be involved in Italy’s growing gambling scandal and things aren’t looking so good for the young midfielder.
• Could there be some sort of plea deal for Fagioli on the table that would see him with a reduced suspension? The Italian media thinks so.
• We must remember that as much as it hurts to lose a talent like Fagioli on the field, this is very much a young man who is dealing with a serious problem off the field. There is very much a human element to all of this and that can’t be forgotten.
• Twitter questions — including what’s the potential of another Adrien Rabiot contract extension considering Juve’s midfield is now incredibly shorthanded, and what could Weston McKennie’s role be now that one of Juventus’ RCM options in Fagioli is looking at a suspension at some point soon.

You can listen to Episode 177 of the Old Lady Speaks Podcast on your preferred podcasting platform or through the media player below:

To our dear listeners: Please look for the latest episode of The Old Lady Speaks Podcast to drop every Monday and Thursday mornings/afternoons for those of you who live in the United States. (Please adjust your time zone according if you live outside of the U.S.)

If you happen to listen to the Old Lady Speaks on Apple Podcasts or Spotify, please subscribe to the show and give us a nice five-star rating and review because it is very nice to see that our podcast is being enjoyed by you all. The more you say nice things about us, the more we will continue to love you forever and ever and ever. We promise.