The Florentine Alessandro Bianco left the pitch with a broken nose
Those: AP/Francisco Seco
In the European Cup, Turkish fans are negative in two games. Fenerbahçe Istanbul supporters throw and hit the opposing goalkeeper in the head. The Sivasspor game is even more intense.
EFirst a fan attack, now a head hit: Seville goalkeeper Marko Dmitrovic was again in the spotlight on the big football stage. The 31-year-old was hit in the head by an object in the second leg of the Europa League round of 16 at Fenerbahçe Istanbul on Thursday. The match had to be interrupted in the second half because the Sevilla keeper fell down after the goal and held his head. Already in the previous round there had been an attack by a fan on Dmitrovic in the Netherlands.
Seville’s Nemanja Gudelj, a good friend of the keeper, said after progressing with a dash of irony about the excitement scene in Istanbul: “Yes, that was a coin or something. He has a tough head.” The Spaniards handed referee Michael Oliver from England several throwable objects, including lighters – but Dmitrovic continued with a band-aid on his bald head. Although Sevilla lost 1-0 in Istanbul’s cauldron, they reached the quarter-finals with a 2-0 win in the first leg.
Dmitrovic was the center of attention during Sevilla FC’s Europa League game against PSV Eindhoven when a man ran onto the field and punched him during the game in late February. The spectator, then dressed in a dark jacket, was overpowered by Dmitrovic and brought down, surrounded by players from both teams and then led off the pitch by security guards.
The supporter of the Dutch football club PSV Eindhoven was later sentenced to three months in prison by a court. In addition, the 20-year-old man is not allowed to enter the area around the Philips Stadium in Eindhoven for two years, the judge in ‘s-Hertogenbosch ruled. A month’s imprisonment was suspended. The current incident in Istanbul is also likely to have consequences.
Florence player breaks his nose
In the Conference League, too, Turkish supporters attracted negative attention. After the visitors’ goal to make it 4-1 in the game between Sivasspor and Fiorentina, two home club supporters stormed the pitch. One of them suddenly punched Alessandro Bianco, Italy midfielder, in the face as he passed. The two were stopped a short time later by folders.
After the game, Bianco reported to Instagram. In one story he posted a photo of his swollen and bloody nose. He commented, expressing his incomprehension in the form of emojis: “Not bad.” Florence coach Vincenzo Italiano explained that his player had broken his nose. “The hit against Bianco was shameful, he didn’t even expect it,” he criticized.
Sivasspor coach Riza Calımbay apologized for the incident. “It shouldn’t have happened. It affected gameplay. I apologize again and again,” he said. His team was eliminated from the Conference League after losing 1-0 in the first leg and 4-1 in the second leg.
