Fabio Celestini AU CSKA Moscou: Suisse is indigne

First problem: Accept to work for a country engaged in a war of which it is at the origin, and in diplomatic conflict with Europe. Second hic, all the more serious: join an institution intimately linked to this conflict. The CSKA Moscow is, historically, the Russian army club. Its name suggests (“CSKA” is the acronym, in Russian, of “central sports club of the army”) and the players who wear its jersey are, even today, nicknamed the “army men”.

And if he is no longer directly managed by the Ministry of Defense, as was the case during the Soviet era, the CSKA has not freed itself from its past. Its owner is none other than the development bank of the Russian Federation. A state organization that voluntarily finances the annexation of Ukraine. As if that were not enough, the CSKA Moscow continues to put part of its sports facilities available to the army.

This weighing context has not dissuaded the former Lausanne-Sport coach from taking the plunge. “A pure madness”, points out “Blick”, speaking of “a total moral collapse”: “Two possible explanations remain: pure greed (they pay well in Moscow). Or a complete ideological blindness ”.

For his part, “Watson” evokes “the symbol of football disconnected from everything that exceeds the limits of the field”. “Fabio Celestini gives the impression of having lost your head,” adds the German site, for whom the Vaudois “succumbs to the call of the portfolio”.

“Watson”, as well as the “Basler Zeitung”, does not fail to remember that the 49 -year -old technician sports a tattoo of Che Guevara on his left arm. “He had once declared to feel a bit like che, because he also fought for his values. In the case of Fabio Celestini, one can wonder: what values? By his gesture, he simply claims that he does not care about morality and ethics, “creaks the” baz “.

Beyond these considerations, Fabio Celestini has placed himself in a delicate posture towards Switzerland. “Blick” reports that the Confederation, aligning the European Union policy, adopted a sanctions regime towards several Russian organizations deemed problematic, including the Development Bank of the Russian Federation. By appearing in his lap, the CSKA Moscow puts himself, in fact, in the overhang. Ditto, by repercussions, for his coach, since his salary will come from prohibited funds. In other words, Celestini will be perceived as an outlaw in his own country.

Concretely, he will find himself unable to transfer Russian money to Switzerland, the banks having to block. Nor will it be authorized to come in as long as he receives Moscow compensation. A thorn in the foot if it were to be dismissed, for example. In the event of an offense, he is exposed to a sentence of up to 5 years in prison, specifies “Blick”. And no question of finding refuge elsewhere: the whole of Europe follows the same framework, in particular Spain, the second homeland of the Lausannois. In short, by deciding to sign in Russia, the latter has no choice but to stay there. A golden prison, in a way.

At FC Basel, no one has publicly castigated Fabio Celestini, but all those questioned about it made it clear that they would not have imitated it. “I have a family who feels very well here and I would not go nowhere. This is why I would not work in a place that would make my entourage unhappy, “said sports director Daniel Stucki.

“I have things in mind that I would probably never do,” said Ludovic Magnin, successor to Celestini among the Rotblau, refusing to play lesson donors. “I prefer to live and let live,” he added. Xherdan Shaqiri took the same tweezers but nevertheless dropped: “For the moment, no money in the world can move away from Basel”.

This reflects obvious discomfort.