Lazio 'ultra' fans on Friday admitted
hanging by the neck tailor's dummies dressed in the replica
shirts of AS Roma players near the Colosseum but refused to
apologise saying it was all part of soccer's jocular ribbing.
The mannequins were found wearing the replica shirts of
Daniele De Rossi, Mohamed Salah and Radja Nainggolan, hanging
from an overhead walkway just across from the Colosseum, next to
a placard saying "a piece of advice, no offence: sleep with the
lights on".
"It's all just healthy mickey-taking sparked by the Rome
derby," the Irriducibili said on the Facebook page Roman Elite.
"We're amazed and stunned by such obtuseness, sensationalism
mixed with alarmism. We don't think we should apologise to
anyone since, although it was in bad taste for some, it all
comes under the longstanding healthy right to deride your
footballing opponents".
The fans posted shots of the mannequins on various social
networks.
Sports Minister Luca Lotti condemned the incident, saying
"this is not sport".
Rome prosecutors said they would investigate Lazio fan groups
to see if charges of aggravated threats could be pressed, or if
the incident was "just a prank".
Lazio told ANSA they "firmly condemned" the incident, while
adding that "after every derby there is mickey-taking and
childish pranks."
Lazio won Sunday's Serie A derby 3-1.
Torino coach Sinisa Mihajlovic said that the suspected Lazio
fans had "gone too far, exceeding all limits".
"I'm struck by the fact that it was possible to hang up
mannequins in front of the most famous monument in the world
without anyone noticing," said the Serbian former Lazio
defender.
"And that they did so, and then filmed it. Scary things".
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