The Wellington Phoenix have pulled off a major coup in signing 28-year-old Italian central defender Marco Rossi.
But there's a catch.
Rossi was previously suspended for one year and eight months and fined 20,000 euros after he was caught in a 2011 fixing scandal that rocked Italian football.
The former Italian youth representative spent six years at Parma, and was on loan at Bari when he was one of 16 club figures sentenced following a wide-ranging investigation known as Scommessolpoli.
Other players and officials were handed sentences ranging from three months to five years, while the club were fined €80,000 and docked five points in the 2012-13 season.
Rossi went on to join Cesena, which cancelled his contract following his sentencing. After serving his ban, Rossi joined Serie B side Perugia before a loan spell at Varese.
The Phoenix made no mention of Rossi's past as the club unveiled their new signing, who joins on a two-year contract with an option for a further year.
"I'm sure the time spent on signing Marco will be well worth it," Coach Ernie Merrick said.
"It was vitally important that we replaced Ben Sigmund with an experienced player because you need two experienced players at the heart of defence.
"As a centre back it is very much about reading the play and starting possession from the back and Marco has the experience to do that.
"Centre back is all about judging the offside line and I believe Marco and Dura will form a good combination.
"No other country in the world has developed defenders like Italy and our young players like Dylan Fox can learn a lot from someone like Marco."
Asked why he had decided to join the Phoenix, Rossi said he felt it was time for a change and wanted to try something different.
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