Madrid, Oct. 9 (IANS): Former footballer Xabi Alonso on Wednesday denied allegations of tax fraud during a two-day trial at a Madrid court.
The ex-Spanish midfielder has been accused by the prosecutors of defrauding the tax office after signing up with an image rights company, Kardzali, based in Madeira, just before he moved from Liverpool to Real Madrid in 2009, reports Efe news.
"I have been transparent, clear and have always submitted my documents and never hidden anything about my estate tax or my income statement because I was under the impression it was all in order," he said.
Alonso, currently part of Real Sociedad's management team, his former advisor Iván Zaldúa and Ignasi Maestre, the former administrator of the company, face five years in prison and a 4 million euro (4.4 million US dollars) fine if found guilty.
They are accused of defrauding the tax office in 2010, 2011 and 2012.
He said his former financial advisor said it was a normal and legal procedure and did not at the time mention tax benefits and added that he received 5 million euros by ceding over his image rights to Kardzali with a contract he signed on August 1, 2009 when he was still a resident of the United Kingdom, not Spain.
He said his involvement with the firm was limited to giving consent to appear in advertising campaigns.
