Ukraine's Football Federation has deducted nine points from two topflight clubs for fixing a league match in 2008, and handed down life bans to a club director and a player.
Metalist Kharkiv and Karpaty Lviv were each deducted nine points and fined $25,000, and all Karpaty players had penalties of $5,000 to $10,000 imposed, said a Ukraine Football Federation statement.
The federation also gave life bans to Metalist director Yevhen Krasnikov, and Karpaty defender Sergei Lashchenkov.
Lashchenkov was sent off during the 4-0 win for Metalist on April 19, 2008. Lashchenkov, who now plays for Azerbaijani team Olimpik Baku, admitted match-fixing, the federation said.
Metalist president Oleksandr Yaroslavskiy, however, denied the allgeations and called the ruling an "openly repressive decision," in a statement posted on his club’s website.
Metalist and Karpaty are fifth and sixth, respectively, in the current season, which is 6 games old. The points deduction would see them drop to the foot of the table. They also both feature in Europa League playoffs this week.
