‘Disgusting’ attack on father was by ‘morons’, says Roma president
ROMA president James Pallotta has bitterly criticised the “disgusting stupidity” of an attack that left an Irish father in a critical condition before the club’s Champions League game in Liverpool last week.
Meath man Sean Cox (53) (inset) was seriously injured prior to the match, with two men from Rome charged by Merseyside Police with violent disorder following the incident, which took place before kick-off on Tuesday in the semi-final first leg at Anfield.
In a tribute to Mr Cox, the jersey of his GAA club, St Peter’s of Dunboyne, was hung up in the dressing room at Anfield on Saturday.
Roma president Mr Pallotta said he was praying for Mr Cox and his family.
“I don’t want to talk about the game at all at Liverpool,” Mr Pallotta told Roma’s website. “What I want to talk about is how these games are great but they’re not life and death. What’s going on right now with Sean Cox in Liverpool, that’s life and death and that affects his family.
“I don’t really give a s*** about the score of the game.”
Mr Pallotta said the attack on Mr Cox was “just the most disgusting stupidity and my prayers are for him and his family”.
“It’s depressing, though, that all of the other fans at Roma get blamed for something that, going back to that saying that I had about a year-and-a-half ago, a few people wrecking things for everyone else.”
Mr Pallotta said that “99.9pc” of Roma fans were “great”.
But he added: “Then, occasionally, you get a few, normally outside of the game, more than anything else. It’s just absolutely ridiculous.” He said it was an issue for the whole country.
“It’s time now for things to change in Italy and in Rome, because it is just happening too much,” Mr Pallotta said.
“We have a long history at Roma and what’s going on when you have a few stupid people is that they destroy our history and they attack our legacy and I’m tired of it.
“Our fans are the best fans in the world, it’s just a couple of ... morons that take the rest of us down.”