Italian prosecutors drop case against referees boss

Rocchi officiated at domestic and international level before his retirement from refereeing in 2020

Prosecutors in Milan have requested that a sports fraud case against Gianluca Rocchi, the man in charge of assigning referees in Italy’s top flight, be dismissed.

The former international referee suspended himself in April after being placed under investigation for “complicity in sporting fraud” during the 2024-25 season.

Rocchi, the National Referees Commission’s referee designator for Serie A and Serie B, has always protested his innocence.

According to Italian news agency Ansa, prosecutors concluded after a two-year inquiry that there was no evidence of match-fixing, saying they did not “identify a structured system aimed at interfering with appointments”.

It was claimed that Rocchi was behind the selection of a referee for an Inter Milan game as he was “liked by Inter”.

A video assistant referee decision not to intervene when an Inter player elbowed an opponent in another game was also under scrutiny.

The simultaneous case against Inter has been dropped as well.

Rocchi was also accused of pressuring a VAR official to encourage a referee to check on the pitchside monitor for a handball offence during Udinese’s 1-0 win over Parma in March last year.

The referee and VAR official had already decided not to award a penalty but changed their minds, it is claimed, leading to Florian Thauvin scoring the only goal of the game.

Prosecutors have now forwarded the case documents to the sports justice authorities and the Italian Olympic Committee’s General Prosecutor’s Office to assess whether any disciplinary breaches within a sporting context may have occurred.

Sporting fraud is a criminal offence in Italy and carries a maximum sentence of six years in prison.

Southampton sign Dobbin from Villa for £9m

Lewis Dobbin is the fifth new signing made by Southampton this summer

Southampton have completed the signing of attacker Lewis Dobbin from Aston Villa for a fee of almost £9m.

The 23-year-old spent last season on loan at Preston North End, where he scored 11 goals - with eight assists - in 41 Championship appearances.

Dobbin never made a senior appearance during his time at Villa after signing from Everton for £10m in 2024.

Saints beat off competition from a number of clubs, including Middlesbrough, for the forward’s signature.

He has previously had loan spells at West Bromwich Albion, Derby County and Norwich City.

“He is already, at a young age, a proven player in the Championship who is always a threat to defences with his speed and ability to stretch teams,” Southampton technical director Johannes Spors told the club website.

“His versatility gives us greater flexibility in our forward line. We look forward to seeing him thrive with us not only next season, but in the years ahead.”

Head coach Tonda Eckert and his Southampton players have returned for pre-season training and will be back in action on Saturday when they play National League neighbours Eastleigh at the Silverlake Stadium.

They will then travel to Germany for two matches before returning to England to start their EFL Cup campaign against Colchester United on 8 August.

The FA’s investigation into Southampton’s conduct following Spygate remains ongoing, over a month after being launched.

Saints were expelled from the Championship play-offs last season and will start the new campaign on minus four points as part of the punishment handed out by an independent disciplinary commission.

Winks leaves Leicester for Italian side Cagliari

Midfielder Harry Winks has left Leicester City to join Italian side Cagliari for an undisclosed fee on a two-year contract.

The 30-year-old’s departure had long been expected, with the former England player, who was one of Leicester’s top earners, repeatedly falling out of favour in recent seasons.

Winks was omitted from the side late in the 2024-25 campaign by then boss Ruud van Nistelrooy as Leicester battled to avoid relegation from the Premier League, and having been recalled after they dropped into the Championship, he was later left out of the squad again by Marti Cifuentes.

He did regain his place under Cifuentes’ replacement, Gary Rowett, but a heated argument with a supporter as he boarded the team bus following a defeat at Portsmouth in April made him a focus of derision from City’s own fans for what remained of a sorry season which saw them relegated to League One.

Winks’ final appearances for Leicester were played out to the sound of boos from large sections of supporters whenever he touched the ball.

In total, he featured 109 times for the Foxes in all competitions after arriving for about £10m from Tottenham Hotspur in the summer of 2023.

He played a leading role in Leicester’s promotion as Championship title winners under boss Enzo Maresca in his first season with the East Midlands side.

But he went on to become one of the high-profile, big-earners heavily criticised for underperforming as they suffered back-to-back relegations to drop to the third tier.

Winks’ move to Cagliari sees him return to Serie A, having previously played for Sampdoria on loan in 2022-23 when the one-time Italian champions and European Cup finalists were relegated.

Arsenal forward Trossard joins Besiktas for £15.3m

Belgium forward Leandro Trossard has joined Turkish side Besiktas from Arsenal on a three-year contract.

The 31-year-old has been signed for 18m euros (£15.3m) - paid in six equal instalments over three years - and his deal also includes a further one-year option.

On Tuesday, he was given permission to travel to Istanbul to undergo a medical after a transfer fee was agreed.

Trossard was under contract until 2027 with Arsenal, having joined from Brighton for £21m plus add-ons in January 2023.

He scored 36 goals and registered 34 assists in 174 appearances for the Gunners, helping Mikel Arteta’s side win last season’s Premier League title.

Trossard was a key player, starting in the Champions League final defeat by Paris St-Germain and 21 times in the league.

He also started all six games at this summer’s World Cup, scoring twice, as Belgium reached the quarter-finals before losing to Spain.

The Gunners are set to accelerate their pursuit of Club Brugge attacker Christos Tzolis following the departure of Trossard.

BBC Sport reported the Gunners’ interest in the Greece international in June and the club are now poised to move for the forward.

Club Brugge are anticipating an offer from Arsenal for Tzolis.

Sporting director Andrea Berta is working on the deal after his assistant Maurizio Micheli watched the 24-year-old play for Greece against Sweden last month.

Tzolis could be available for about £30m (35m euros).

Any move for him would be separate to Arsenal’s interest in signing more high-profile attackers this summer.

They retain a long-term interest in Atletico Madrid’s Julian Alvarez, who is the club’s priority target, but it remains to be seen if a deal for the Argentina international is possible this summer with Barcelona and Real Madrid also interested.

Morgan Rogers is Arsenal’s preferred option in their search for a versatile forward, with the club’s efforts to sign the Aston Villa attacker set to accelerate once his participation at the World Cup with England is over.

Paris St-Germain winger Bradley Barcola is viewed as the alternative in the event of failing to reach an agreement with Aston Villa, who reportedly value Rogers at £130m.

Meanwhile, Arsenal recruitment specialist Micheli watched Georgia Under-21 international Andria Bartishvili play for Iberia 1999 against Flora in their Champions League qualifier last Wednesday, with sources indicating the Gunners are stepping up their efforts to land the teenage attacker.

Bournemouth sign £25.7m striker Rodriguez

Rodriguez is a product of Real Madrid’s academy system

Bournemouth have announced the signing of striker Alvaro Rodriguez from Spanish club Elche in a deal worth up to £25.7m.

Rodriguez has joined on a five-year contract to strengthen the Cherries’ forward line alongside Evanilson, with the deal confirmed on the day of his 22nd birthday.

Rodriguez should provide a more physical presence in attack and will add competition and depth as Bournemouth prepare for their first season in Europe having qualified for the Europa League.

Real Madrid will receive 50% of any future transfer fee for the Uruguay youth international, who is also eligible to represent Spain, after selling him to Elche last summer.

Rodriguez scored seven goals and provided five assists in 34 La Liga appearances last season.

New Bournemouth manager Marco Rose had previously been interested in signing Rodriguez before his move to the Vitality Stadium, while the Cherries had also been scouting him for some time.

It is also understood Rodriguez is not being signed as a replacement for teenage forward Junior Kroupi, who has been linked with a move away, with the Cherries instead looking to sell Turkey striker Enes Unal.

“It is a great privilege to be here,” Rodriguez said. “I have always wanted to play in the Premier League and now, on my birthday, I can make that dream a reality.

“It has been a dream since I was a child and, when my agent told me Bournemouth were interested, I could not believe it.

“Everything I have experienced so far is important for this next chapter and I want to keep improving here.”