Premier referees’ association and Anglo-Saxon press attack the Roma coach: “Uefa must punish him harshly”
June 2 – London
“We are appalled to see the unwarranted and horrific abuse directed at referee Anthony Taylor and his family as he tries to walk home after taking charge of the Europa League final.” The anger of the Premier League referees’ association is that of all of English football, which reacted with indignation to the attack that took place at Budapest airport on the referee who directed the final between Rome and Seville. The video of Taylor with his terrified daughter in tears in front of him and his wife clinging to his backpack while escorted by the policemen makes his way between two wings of Roma supporters who insult him in every way (one even throws a chair at him) has made the tour of English newspapers and TV, accompanied by messages of solidarity for what many consider His Majesty’s best whistle. For most of the British critics, the Budapest airport scenes have a culprit: José Mourinho.
I accuse
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All the articles that talk about the attack on referee Taylor at the airport also report the words that Mourinho spoke at the press conference and the confrontation between the Roma coach and the referee in the parking lot of the Budapest stadium. “He could have done it in the locker room, as has happened so many times, instead he chose a parking space knowing that it would be filmed by the cameras,” Peter Walton, a former Premier League referee, wrote in an editorial for the Times. Bad example. Only this week the FA announced new measures, such as penalty points, to combat behavior like this and abuses in grassroots football. But Mourinho with what he has done makes the job of any referee immensely more difficult: he is a role model for many and he can’t behave like that.There are two ways to support the referees after this episode: the first is to ensure that Taylor returns immediately to referee in Europe next season, including Roma; the second is that Mourinho is punished for the his behavior”.
The other reactions
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In the Telegraph, the correlation between Mou’s words and the attack on Taylor is so explicit that it is immediately made in the article accompanying the video of the airport, the first news item in the sports section. “Finals aren’t always easy to referee, but that was another story and looking at Roma’s season it was normal to expect it – writes columnist Sam Wallace -. Only then the referees are asked to venture to the airport among fans angry to fly home on commercial flights, something UEFA would never ask of players and managers. It is clear that this level of disrespect Mourinho has displayed has consequences. In Taylor’s case, they were immediate and shocking “. And it’s the same on the Mirror’s sports page, which correlates the attack on the referee and Mou’s words already in the title. The J’accuse of the English press is quite clear: Mourinho should pay for what happened to Taylor and for his behavior during and after the final. Now it’s up to UEFA to decide.
June 2, 2023 (change June 2, 2023 | 12:17)
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