Ajaccio hit by Courbis ban

Newly-promoted AC Ajaccio may have to start the new French season without coach Rolland Courbis.

Illegal payments
After being charged with alleged corruption and spending 48 hours in jail, Courbis was released on bail by a French court but banned from carrying out his managerial duties. Courbis is currently involved in an inquiry looking into irregular transfers while he was coach of Olympique de Marseille between 1997 and 1999. He has been charged with receiving illegal payments for the transfers of Ghana’s Arthur Moses, Paraguay’s Ricardo Rojas and the Ivory Coast’s Ibrahima Bakayoko.

Previous record 
The decision to suspend Courbis until further notice triggered an angry reaction from the former AS Monaco FC player, who was released from jail after paying bail of €770,000. "They have stopped me doing my job," he said. "It's like a baker being stopped for speeding and prevented from making bread." But this is not the first time the 49-year old has been the subject of this type of investigation: in the 1980s he was found guilty of similar charges at SC Toulon.

Major blow
The French court's decision is a major blow for Ajaccio, last season's second division champions. With Le Championnat starting on 3 August, the Corsican club now look certain to start the new season without their inspirational coach. Chairman Michel Moretti said it was a "curious decision which punishes not Marseille but Ajaccio". Moretti has put Dominique Bijotat, Georges Jacomo and Olivier Pantaloni in charge until a decision is made about a possible appeal.