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Soldiers had to separate Roma player, Lazio director after Coppa Derby

Soldiers had to separate Roma player, Lazio director after Coppa Derby

Members of the Italian armed forces were called to separate a Roma player and Lazio’s director of sport on Tuesday evening.

The two sides had just faced off in the second leg of the Coppa Italia semi-final, Roma’s 3-2 win not enough to seal qualification to the final, as they’d lost the reverse fixture 2-0.

Antonio Rudiger, who has become a cornerstone at Roma, was, Il Tempo reports, involved in an altercation with Igli Tare, a former Serie A striker turned sporting director, in the Olimpico’s car park.

It emerges that the two were having a heated conversation in German, both having previously played in the Bundesliga, before Rudiger was heard to shout “Thief!” at Tare. A few servicemen happened to be on duty, and resolved to separate the two and calm them down.

This may have something to do with Roma’s earlier Derby win in Serie A play, when Lazio everyman Senad Lulic made some shocking and inexcusable racist comments about Rudiger.
 
Speaking after the game, Lulic accused Rudiger of “acting like a star, when two years ago he was selling socks and belts in Stuttgart [his former club]”.