Viola fans in Naples ban
Fiorentina fans have been banned from travelling to the San Paolo in Naples this weekend, but Catania pay for a special train for the Inter trip.
The newly-opened CAMS (Committee for the Analysis of Security in Sporting Events) announced its findings this evening.
Although the Viola supporters were praised as “virtuous”, the ban on travelling to Naples is for their own protection amid fears of crowd trouble.
Napoli have been hit hard by the authorities in the wake of the problems that affected their visit to Rome in Week 1, when they did £300,000 worth of damage to two trains.
This means there will be very few people at the San Paolo for this weekend’s game, as no Fiorentina fans are allowed and two of the four stands are closed as punishment for that crowd trouble.
There were fears that Catania supporters would be prevented from making the trip up to Milan for the Inter match on Saturday evening, as there are no trains coming back to Sicily until Sunday morning.
However, the issue was resolved by the club, which paid for a special train only for fans who possess a match ticket.
Donadel Unhappy With Fan Ban Fiorentina midfielder Marco Donadel has expressed his disappointment with the decision to ban fans from the San Paolo for the game against Napoli on Sunday.
One section of the Partenopei’s stadium will be closed to fans as the fixture been described as a high risk game.
The decision comes following the trouble which plagued round one of Serie A and it seems like most of the stadium will be empty.
The midfielder is not too happy but he insists his side must not think about it as being a disadvantage as they look to get a result from their away days in Naples.
“It’s a shame the fans will not be there as usually it’s a fiery and warm atmosphere,” said Donadel.
“It’s a shame for both fans but I don’t think it will affect the game too much.
“In any case we will go there to win and I am sure we will continue to play well.
“We always get off to a slow start in September but we should be in full swing by next month.”
The Viola started the campaign well as they held Juventus to a 1-1 draw at the Artemio Franchi.
Cesare Prandelli’s men will now be hoping to come away from the port city with maximum points as they try to establish themselves as Scudetto contenders this term.
Napoli have lodged a formal appeal to the football authorities to try and get the ban lifted.