Roma boss Jose Mourinho has been charged by UEFA for using abusive language with Anthony Taylor during the Europa League final. Throughout the loss to Sevilla in Budapest, the Roma manager and his crew repeatedly yelled at the Premier League referee. Following the match, a video posted to social media shows Mourinho yelling at the referees in the parking lot, calling their performance a “disgrace.”
“I must speak up for my guys, and although we are accustomed to it, it is still really difficult to witness this type of refereeing in a European championship game,” Jose Mourinho said about Anthony Taylor. “The match was exciting and fierce, and the referee appeared to be Spanish. The entire time, it was all yellow.”
On Thursday, Taylor and his family experienced harassment on their way home after the final. Social media videos show them being led into a secure area by airport security after fans harassed the referee following a heated final on Wednesday night. The videos posted to Twitter show objects being hurled at Taylor and his group, including a chair and a bottle. According to a statement from Budapest Airport, a guy who had been charged with affray following the event had legal action taken against him.
“At AS Roma, we don’t want to cast any doubt on Sevilla’s abilities. We think that we put up a fantastic final with our opponents and did the greatest job possible of honoring the UEFA platform that was provided to us,” Roma general manager Tiago Pinto said. “We don’t generally comment on these kinds of instances, but after examining both the more obvious and the more subtle ones, it is obvious that the match’s officiating was unbalanced in terms of discipline.”
After a heated encounter in which British referee Taylor issued 14 yellow cards, the most ever in a Europa League game, and played over 30 minutes of stoppage time in total, Sevilla prevailed on penalties to hand Mourinho his first defeat in a European final. While Mourinho was accused alone, UEFA also brought charges against both clubs for a variety of infractions, and fan conduct was also punished. Roma were also accused of hurling things, igniting fireworks, causing damage, disturbing the peace, and acting improperly as a team. Sevilla has also been accused of hurling items, setting off pyrotechnics, causing damage, causing disturbances in the crowd, and acting improperly as a squad.
This writer has been asking coaches around Europe to pick their most impactful teammates as part of a forthcoming project. Pep Guardiola and Roberto De Zerbi have received several accolades, although the list is diverse. A former Serie A coach praised Rob Edwards’ efforts at Luton Town. Many Spanish coaches were attracted to the approach Russell Martin has been putting into place at Swansea. Even the manager of a Japanese mid-table team was admired. But Jose Mourinho hasn’t yet been mentioned by name.
Perhaps familiarity breeds contempt in this situation. But after preaching about his pride in his dignity, Mourinho, 60, punctuated a bad-tempered Europa League final loss to Sevilla by hurling expletives at the officials in, of all places, the parking lot. It was a terrible picture. It’s nothing new. It has served as his career’s almost continuous soundtrack. He is perpetually angry, and that is his default condition. never really defeated. Always more than irritated. Always there with a stinging statistic and a point to make.
“It’s not the accepted practice, and nobody wants to witness it. Without a doubt, that is unacceptable. Though he still shouldn’t be doing it, I do view it as dissatisfaction if a manager yells at the referee as he exits the pitch at the conclusion of the game and feels vindicated,” former Premier League referee Dermot Gallagher said. “It is, however, very inappropriate to witness Mourinho yelling at the referee in a video that we have seen as he drives back to his hotel after changing. It was one of the toughest games I’ve ever seen, and it was a ferocious battle from beginning to end. The referee must have been psychologically worn out after that, in my opinion.”
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