Zaniolo investigated for fighting with Roma youth players
The now Fiorentina player sneaked into the dressing room of the Roman U20 team
The Italian Football Federation (FIGC) on Tuesday opened an investigation into Nicolo Zaniolo , the Fiorentina player accused by his former club, Roma, of inciting a fight with Roma youth players after the Serie A match between the two teams in the Primavera Championship.
The FIGC Prosecutor’s Office opened the investigation to clarify what happened in the locker room at Viola-Park, the Fiorentina training complex where the semi-finals of the Primavera Championship were played, which the Florentine side won 1-2, after both clubs gave two completely different versions of the story.
Roma, the team where Zaniolo played for four seasons (2018-2023) and where he scored the decisive goal in the Conference League final, the club’s first European title in 61 years, claimed that the player provoked the ‘giallorosso’ dressing room and assaulted two players
“The footballer went to the Primavera team’s locker room at the end of the match and behaved provocatively toward some of the Giallorossa youth team players. During the confrontation, two Primavera players were allegedly physically assaulted ,” the official statement said.
A version that ‘Fiore’ radically denied in its statement with statements from Zaniolo himself , who since leaving Roma has maintained a very poor relationship with Roma fans and management.
“Fiorentina, regarding what happened at the end of the Primavera Championship semi-final between Fiorentina and Roma, reports the following statements from footballer Nicolò Zaniolo: ‘At the end of the match, I went down to the locker room to congratulate the Fiorentina boys and then I went to the Roma locker room to greet them and congratulate them on the season, but at one point they started insulting me , so, to avoid the situation getting worse, I preferred to leave,'” explained the ‘Viola’ team.
For his part, Zaniolo , owned by Galatasaray but close to signing permanently for Fiore, published a message on social media giving his version, in which he revealed that he “reacted badly” but in which he denied the assault of which Roma accuses him.
“I want to apologize for what happened. I know I reacted badly and I take responsibility . I went to the locker room with the goal of supporting the guys (Roma) in a difficult moment after the defeat. Unfortunately, one of them verbally provoked me and I lost my cool,” he said.
“I must clarify that, beyond a verbal argument, there has been no aggressive physical behavior on my part ,” he added.
In the coming hours, the FIGC Prosecutor’s Office will begin the relevant interrogations, and if Roma’s version of Zaniolo hitting Giallorossi youth players is confirmed, the current Fiore player risks a severe ban for the next season.
