GENOA (ITALPRESS) – An evening of guerrilla warfare in Genoa after the Coppa Italia derby won by Sampdoria on penalty kicks. Even before the end of the match, hundreds of ultras from the respective factions came out of the Luigi Ferraris stadium with the aim of clashing, but the massive security arrangements put in place by the police prevented direct contact. Several scuffles broke out in the Marassi neighborhood. On several occasions, police used water cannons and tear gas to ward off fans armed with helmets and sticks. In addition to the throwing of objects, firecrackers and smoke bombs, barricades were formed with dumpsters set on fire. The final toll was 38 injured. According to figures released by city hospitals, 15 police officers and 11 carabinieri were medicated following the scuffles, while 12 fans ended up in the emergency room. None are life-threatening, but for some the prognoses are serious. On the public order front at the moment there are three people arrested, two youngsters from Marseille (one already hit with a Daspo for the Ascoli-Genoa incidents in 2022) and a 50-year-old Sampdorian ultras, arrested in flagrante delicto for resisting a public official. The number, however, could rise in the coming hours thanks to investigations and the numerous images recorded by surveillance cameras, Digos officers and the helicopter of the 8th Florence police flight department that flew over the surroundings of the Ferraris stadium throughout the afternoon and evening.
Stefano Paoloni, SAP general secretary, meanwhile reported that “several colleagues were injured, two of them particularly seriously, one of them with fractured three ribs. Both have been diagnosed with a 30-day prognosis. This is also why we hope that the Security DDL, approved in the House and now under consideration in the Senate, which provides for more severe penalties for those who use violence and resistance to public officials, will be approved expeditiously.”
The climate between ultras had already been tense for months, and in recent weeks there had been more attempts to directly confront each other, which is why attention has risen on the public order front. Further exacerbating the tempers during the derby was the gesture of displaying in the Gradinata Nord, the heart of the Rossoblù fan base, the blucerchi banners stolen from the Ultras Tito Cucchiaroni headquarters during a raid last May following other clashes at the Foce provoked by opponents. Early yesterday afternoon saw the latest close-range challenge near the Ferraris, with police forces once again preventing the clash and the neighborhood ending up under siege, with merchants deciding to close their stores early.
– photo xa8/Italpress –
(ITALPRESS).
