Fiorentina president, Rocco Commisso, has lashed out at West Ham, saying they treated his side like “animals” at the recently played UEFA Europa Conference League final, which the Hammers won 2-1
The match saw striker Luca Jovic forced to leave the field at halftime due to a broken nose, while captain Cristiano Biraghi sustained a bloodied face after being struck by an object thrown from the crowd.
West Ham finally ended their 43-year trophy drought with a decisive late goal from Jarrod Bowen.
“I expected to win, but it wasn’t like that,” Commisso said after the match. But there have been episodes on the pitch where the referee had to make the difference.
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“I spoke to the president of the Premier League, those of West Ham are animals in the way they treated ours. It’s not right.
“This match could be won 3-0. I’m sorry for the fans, they deserved more.”
Separately, the Serie A club “strongly condemned” what happened to Biraghi.
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“This unacceptable behaviour obviously affected the performance of the footballer and his team-mates, who had their attention drawn away from footballing matters by the threats to their own safety,” Fiorentina said.
The Italian club’s president, Rocco Commisso, expressed confidence that Uefa, the governing body of European football, would take necessary action to address the situation and punish those responsible for the incident.
He stated that Fiorentina is “certain” Uefa would deliver an appropriate response, setting an example to prevent similar occurrences in the future.
In a separate incident, Prague police reported a total of 23 arrests, with one individual being a West Ham supporter and the remaining 22 Fiorentina fans.
The Fiorentina supporters attacked West Ham fans at a bar in central Prague. According to the police, 17 out of the 22 Fiorentina fans involved were arrested over the mayhem.
