Shanghai Shenhua Coach Leonid Slutsky Sentenced to Suspended Jail Term for Bribery

He accepted $228,000 in Russia

He will also pay a fine of around $57,000

Leonid Slutsky, the manager of Chinese Super League side Shanghai Shenhua, has been sentenced to a suspended jail term of two years and six months for bribery in Russia.

The 51 year old was found guilty of accepting 10 million rubles ($228,000) in bribes in 2020 while he was manager of Russian Premier League club Rubin Kazan.

Slutsky will also pay a fine of 3.5 million rubles (around $57,000) as part of his sentence.

The court in Moscow heard that Slutsky had accepted a bribe from Alexander Gusev, the former general director of Rubin Kazan, in exchange for selecting certain players for the team and influencing match results.

Slutsky has denied any wrongdoing and has said that he will appeal against the verdict.

He has been in charge of Shanghai Shenhua since July 2021 and has led the team to 12th place in the Chinese Super League.

It is unclear whether Slutsky will now be able to continue in his role with Shanghai Shenhua.

The club has not yet commented on the verdict.