AS Roma has accused Nicolò Zaniolo of assaulting two youth players. The former Roma player allegedly entered the locker room in a drunken state on Monday after a match.
The 25-year-old Zaniolo, as a player of Fiorentina, was present at the match between the reserve teams of AS Roma and Fiorentina. AS Roma claims that Zaniolo, after the match won by Fiorentina, entered the home team’s locker room under the influence of alcohol, urinated there, and provoked players.
Roma writes on its site that it is “shocked” by the incident. “He hit Mattia Almaviva and pushed Marco Litti hard against the bench. Litti recently underwent shoulder surgery.” Both youth players had to go to the hospital. According to the club, Almaviva needs ten days to recover, while Litti is out for three weeks.
Zaniolo, who played for Roma from 2018 to 2023, has apologized on Instagram but claims that the facts are different. “From my side, apart from a verbal discussion, there was no question of physically aggressive behavior.”
“I wanted to give a positive signal to the boys at a difficult moment after the match. Unfortunately, I was verbally challenged by a boy and, wrongly, lost my temper. It is a mistake I deeply regret, especially because I know I should be an example to the youngsters.”
The Italian Football Federation is investigating the incident.