‘Atalanta not linked to alleged betting scam’

The coach of Serie A side Atalanta, Stefano Colantuono, on Tuesday said the club was not in any way implicated in an alleged betting scam as police moved to question their suspended former skipper Cristiano Doni.“We have done nothing. What we achieved (promotion last season as champions of Serie B) we won on our own merits,” Colantuono told a conference.“We won the championship by a large distance,” he added of a side which has consolidated its position in lower mid table of the top flight.Doni, 38, has already been suspended for three-and-a-half years by the Italian Football Federation’s disciplinary committee while Atalanta were handed a six-point penalty.Doni insists he is innocent of involvement in a “last bets” scandal, five years on from another match-fixing scandal dubbed Calciopoli which saw Juventus relegated and four other clubs handed points penalties.Those involved in the “Last bet” skulduggery are alleged to have contacted players to buy at least three Atalanta games last season to help rig bets for a network based in Singapore but stretching as far as Eastern Europe.