Coppa Italia final events were more than bad, they were evil
The events surrounding the Coppa Italia final between Napoli and Fiorentina were more than bad, they were evil.
At least no one was killed in Rome on Saturday night, unlike some previous occasions. Maybe this time some good may emerge from the recriminations. Because of the high profile of the match, and the presence of so many dignitaries including the new Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, it seems the government is now ready to introduce lifetime bans orders for violent hooligans. But that may be just scratching at the surface.
What Saturday night’s events exposed, not for the first time, is that the infection runs much deeper and is much more sinister than it appears.
There are differing accounts of the shooting incident. Was the gunman, Daniele De Santis, acting on his own or as part of a group of Roma fans bent on another vendetta against the ultras from Naples?
Whatever happened, De Santis — or Gastone as he prefers to be known — was already a notorious figure. Ten years ago he was one of those responsible when the Rome derby was abandoned after false rumours that a child had been run down and killed by a police vehicle. Well-known in far-right circles, his record extends back to 1996 when he was arrested for an extortion attempt on Roma president Franco Sensi.
On Saturday there had been skirmishes between Napoli and Fiorentina fans before the game. But obviously the shooting changed the mood dramatically. Inside the stadium both sets of supporters were shocked as the news filtered through, and it was at that point that an even more notorious figure emerged as the Napoli spokesman.
Gennaro De Tommaso has his picture all over the internet by now, with his black T-shirt proclaiming “Freedom for Speziale”. Genny, like Gastone, has a record going back years. Former leader of the dissolved Napoli ultra group, the Mastiffs, he’s also among those linked to organised crime, specifically to the Misso clan of the camorra.
It is hard by now to be shocked by anything in Italian football. To see someone with ties to the most bloodthirsty gangsters in Italy negotiating with the police over whether the cup final should go ahead must set a new low. The T-shirt slogan simply made it more sickening: Antonio Speziale is the Catania ultra serving an eight-year sentence for the killing of police inspector Filippo Raciti at a match against Palermo in 2007.
Was it right to negotiate? Yes, according Antonello Ardituro, public prosecutor in Naples, and he should know as he’s one of main men in the anti-mafia taskforce dedicated to combating the camorra.
“At that moment, negotiating with the ultras was the best choice.
“The problem is that moment should not have arrived”.
The ties between Napoli ultras and the camorra are no secret. Emiliano Zapata Misso, one of those camorra leaders ‘turned’ by the authorities, was quite explicit when he testified in court back in 2010. Access to the terraces on the Curva A was policed by groups linked to different camorra factions and they also planned the violent encounters with other groups of ultras.
On Saturday, alongside the thousands of normal fans from Florence and Naples just there for the match, were hundreds of ultras from elsewhere, bent on trouble — including those from Genoa, ‘twinned’ with Napoli, and from Verona, their sworn enemies. Football for them has become cycle of endless vendettas, and behind them are some very ugly elements who continue to enjoy the mayhem.
