Violence, punches, and stabbings: 5-a-side football match in Angri ends in bloodshed
Terror at the Gymnasium sports center: a manager and an athlete in the hospital. Sporting Stabia accuses: “Manhunt culminated in two attacks”. The defense of Del Monte from Angri: “One of our players a victim of racism”.
Angri. Violence on the field, with the athletes of Sporting Stabia, a Serie D 5-a-side football team from Castellammare di Stabia, being attacked on Sunday evening at the Gymnasium sports center in Angri (where they were winning against Del Monte before the arrival of the carabinieri) by about 10 unruly fans, some of whom were armed with sharp objects: a player had to be hospitalized as soon as he returned to his hometown after being stabbed in the hand while trying to defend himself from the blind fury of the pseudo supporters. A report was filed with the carabinieri regarding the incident, while the match referee documented what happened. The decisions of the sports judge will be announced during the week, and a heavy penalty is expected for the home team. In the stands, there were families, girlfriends, friends, children of all ages. Nothing hinted at the worst. The second half had just begun, when after a foul and an altercation between players, the parquet floor of the structure on via Del Monte was invaded by 6/7 people coming from the stands who, along with some members of the same local team, started a violent brawl that began with shoving and ended with a physical attack on the guests and a particular athlete who was stabbed in the palm of his hand. In fact, to avoid contact, two of the Stabia players, the captain and the manager, tried to shield themselves and received a punch in the face and a cut on the palm of the right hand caused by a knife introduced onto the playing field. After striking with the blade, the perpetrator, who was reportedly covered and protected by the other intruders and some members of the local team, walked away and disappeared. In the meantime, the Stabia team decided to leave the field along with the referee, as there were no longer conditions to continue the match, waiting for the police to whom the incident was reported. A shocked Stabia player described what happened, explaining that the attack happened without any provocation. “We were there to play, but everything escalated in a few moments. It is not acceptable for someone to bring knives to a futsal match.” Deputy Francesco Emilio Borrelli commented that such episodes must be firmly opposed. He emphasized the need for “a radical change in the rules and controls to prevent similar situations. We cannot tolerate that sport is used as an excuse for barbaric behavior.” The Stabia club also expressed their bitterness. “A tournament that costs us thousands of euros a year with a team kept alive by people who, for 10 years, out of love for this sport, make sacrifices, invest time, passion, money, and face. We try to defend our colors and the city we represent on every field, in every sports hall in Campania, always with education and respect for the opponent, but what happened to us on Sunday is something deplorable, shameful, which not only kills sport and the principles that revolve around it but also completely kills the human being,” they said from the club. “Now we sincerely hope that the Lega Nazionale Dilettanti Campania, together with the appropriate authorities, will judge and punish severely this very serious incident, aware that it could have been much, much worse.” The Angri club denies the accusations: “what has been described does not correspond entirely to the truth, the incident is linked to racist behaviors towards one of our foreign-born players, who was then hit while the score was 6-3 in their favor. At that point, after the reaction to what had happened, he was surrounded by players and guests. Following this chaotic situation, events escalated with the entry of more people onto the field, but no knives were used or brandished.” Finally: “We ask that full light be shed on what happened and that all parties involved be heard impartially”.
