Fiorentina label West Ham "animals" after behaviour in final

Talk about adding insult to injury. Fiorentina are not only deeply upset by their defeat in the Conference League final against West Ham (1-2 on Wednesday at the Eden Arena in Prague) but also by the treatment received, in their opinion, from the Hammers and their fans.

"West Ham treated us like they were animals", stated Rocco Commisso, Fiorentina president. Former Madrid forward Luca Jovic was taken off at half time with the broken nose, and captain Cristiano Biraghi, received medical aid after he was hit on the head by an object thrown from the stands and  started bleeding.

Commisso declared, "I expected to win, but it wasn't like that. There were episodes on the pitch where the referee had to make the difference. 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".

The president of Fiorentina also commented, "This match could be won 3-0. I'm sorry for the fans, they deserved more. We condemn what happened to Biraghi. It was unacceptable behaviour which obviously affected the performance of the footballer and his teammates, who had their attention drawn away from footballing matters by the threats to their own safety".

Commisso also hopes that UEFA "duly punish those responsible for this act, delivering an appropriate response and setting an example so that such situations never occur again". 

There was also an incident before the game that saw Fiorentina fans attack West Ham supporters in a bar in Prague. 

 

June 8, 2023