Juventus docked points AGAIN! Bianconeri drop out of Serie A Champions League places after ten-point deduction amid investigation into transfer dealings

• Juventus initially had 15 points taken
• Club had punishment lifted on appeal
• Now deducted another ten by authorities

WHAT HAPPENED? The Italian side were initially hit with a 15-point penalty in January over a number of financial violations concerning player valuations, including the transfer that saw Miralem Pjanic join Barcelona while Juve signed Arthur Melo from the Catalan side. A host of directors including then-president Andrea Agnelli and vice-president Pavel Nedved - who has now been acquitted - were given lengthy suspensions from football but they had already resigned from the club by the time the punishments were announced.

The points were temporarily restored on appeal, but the federal court of appeal has returned with a new sentence, taking ten points away from Massimiliano Allegri's team.

WHAT THEY SAID: In a statement, Juventus said: "Juventus Football Club takes note of what was decided by the FIGC Court of Appeal and reserves the right to read the reasons to evaluate a possible appeal to the Guarantee Board at CONI. What was established by the fifth instance of judgment in this matter, which began more than a year ago, arouses great bitterness in the club and in its millions of supporters who, in the absence of clear rules, find themselves extremely penalised with the application of sanctions that do not seem to take into account the principle of proportionality. While not ignoring the need for urgency, which Juventus has never shied away from during the proceedings, it is emphasised that these are facts that still have to be evaluated by a judge."

THE BIGGER PICTURE: The new punishment could see them miss out on a place in Europe next season, though the Bianconeri could still qualify for the Champions League, although they will be relying on other results going in their favour.

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WHAT NEXT FOR JUVENTUS? Allegri's men can jump into fifth place, which guarantees a spot in the Europa League, with a win against Empoli on Monday and could then leapfrog AC Milan into the fourth and final Champions League spot when they take on the Rossoneri on Sunday.