ROME (AP) -Former Italy forward Christian Vieri has filed a ?21 million (US$28.5 million) lawsuit against his old club Inter Milan and Telecom Italia for allegedly spying on him.
Vieri accuses Telecom Italia of illegally tapping his phone when he played for the club between 1999-2005. Inter, which wouldn't comment on the case, was allegedly worried about Vieri's off-field activities.
Vieri is seeking ?9 million (US$12 million) from Inter and ?12 million from Telecom Italia, his lawyer Danilo Buongiorno told The Associated Press on Thursday.
Buongiorno said he expects to first go to court over the case sometime between May and September.
Buongiorno said that when details of the alleged spying became public last year, it damaged Vieri's playing career by causing him undue stress. Buongiorno said the stress caused Vieri to delay knee surgery, which he eventually had in November.
Now with Atalanta, Vieri came on in the second half of a 2-0 loss to Empoli on Wednesday, marking his return from a year of injuries.
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