Maybe the title race in Serie A is over, since Napoli is currently 19 points ahead of the second placed Lazio. But, some other things are not boring, on the contrary. Not only do we have an interesting Champions League position race, but we also have a possible ‘bomb’ – a war between referees and AS Roma. This season, Giallorossi were expected to fight for the Champions League spot since Jose Mourinho became the coach a year before and won the Conference League, while picking up some quality free agent players and loaned stars. But, the team ‘hiccups’ at the moment and are in danger of losing the last place to the UEFA’s most profitable competition, even thou Juventus was punished with a 15 points deduction and is out of equation. And Mourinho’s tactics with referees is not working either, in fact, it could well turn into an ugly war. Before last week Roma didn’t have a single player sent off all season in Serie A.Then Jose Mourinho, who has been sent off three times, served a two-game ban and Roma have a player sent off in each game. 🟥 pic.twitter.com/6uLkg49Kd6— CBS Sports Golazo ⚽️ (@CBSSportsGolazo) March 19, 2023 The last Roma defeat, against arch rivals Lazio saw Giallorossi receiving no less than 3 red cards in a single match (two for players and one for assistant coach) and Marash Kumbulla got the red in a 4-3 loss to Sassuolo the week before, and Jose Mourinho saw a red card in a 2-1 loss to Cremonese three weeks ago. Not only they are seeing a red card per week, but Giallorossi are losing those games. The last time some Roma players god a red card was in December 2022, in a friendly match against Cadiz. The pressure of getting the result amid Champions League place is huge, and the Portuguese coach is using all weapons, which means pressure on referees. So far, he received three red cards, more than any other coach and player in Serie A, and was warned three other times. Roman Derby’s “third halftime”: Mourinho clashes with Lazio’s president after the scarring defeatAccording to SportMediaset, The Italian referee association (AIA) is currently evaluating the option of releasing a public statement against Roma. The head of the association Gianluca Rocchi has reportedly grown tired of the numerous clashes club representatives have had with Serie A officials over the course of this season. Following Roma’s protests in the aftermath of the Derby della Capitale, Sportmediaset reports that Rocchi is seriously considering releasing a statement which will serve to condemn the Giallorossi’s conduct.Roma legend Roberto Pruzzo: “Roma must ask to have their games refereed by officials outside the Italian federation.“On Sunday, Roma received a yellow card after every foul, and Lazio had a yellow card once every five fouls. It’s a war between Roma and the referees.” 🔥🟡🔴— Football Italia (@footballitalia) March 20, 2023 And what is Roma doing? They are angry with the referees and have decided to stop any staff or players from speaking to the media for the rest of this season, after loss to Sassuolo in which another player was sent off. Roberto Pruzzo believes the Giallorossi’s games should be refereed by foreign officials. The former striker and Roma legend spoke to RadioRadio and claimed that referees are at war with Roma.“Roma need to clarify the situation clearly with the referees. A compromise needs to be found. Yesterday we saw five from Lazio receive bookings while Ibanez was sent off for a not-so-clear situation. If I was President of Roma, I’d start requesting foreign referees to oversee the games. Ever since Mourinho arrived, Roma seemed to have suffered a record number of sending-off’s” said Pruzzo.Blues for Roma, as Lazio Blues win Derby Della CapitaleFormer President Rosella Sensi took on Instagram to vent her anger after the Sassuolo match. “You never get accustomed to injustice. After the ban for Mourinho, now comes a one-way refereeing performance in a decisive match for the Champions League zone, that in any case the team still should’ve played much better. After all, the destiny of Roma, as my father always said, is having to suffer twice as much as the others in order to win. Now Mourinho is experiencing that for himself. I hope that Roma will one day be given the consideration they deserve, just like every other club” she wrote. ##NAJAVA_MECA_7118221##
