UEFA does not have a good word about the fact that no away supporters of Frankfurt were welcome at Napoli on Wednesday evening.
UEFA intervenes after Napoli’s refusal of German fans: “Unacceptable”
The boss of the umbrella organization behind the Champions League wants to change the rules in the short term: if a team refuses fans of the visiting party, then, as far as he is concerned, the home team can no longer play in their own stadium. Ceferin explained this to the ZDF.
UEFA now requires clubs to open five percent of the stadium capacity to away fans. “It is unacceptable that the Italian authorities now decide otherwise,” says Ceferin. “That is why we want consequences if this agreement is not fulfilled. If away fans are not allowed to enter the stadium, the match will not be played there from now on. It’s that simple as far as we’re concerned.”
In addition to the announced measure, Ceferin also apologized in the interview for the chaos that arose around last season’s Champions League final. Presumably due to fake tickets, many people could not enter the stadium in time. There was also an unsafe atmosphere and criminal activity took place around the final battle between Liverpool and Real Madrid.
“As an organization we have already apologized and as a person I want to do it again,” said Ceferin. “There is no one at UEFA who does not regret what has gone wrong. The problem is that we as UEFA do not call the shots in the stadium in such a match, the local organization does that. But we too have made mistakes and we will make sure that nothing like this happens again.”
Inter-chairman: “Lukaku will return to Chelsea in summer”
Staying in Italy, for Romelu Lukaku, a permanent transfer to Internazionale is not possible. This has been announced by chairman Beppe Marotta.
The Belgian striker is on loan from Chelsea by Inter, but cannot make much of an impression in Milan, partly due to injuries. “The loan is for one season, on June 30 Lukaku will return to Chelsea regardless of his performance,” Marotta told Sky Italia.
“He is not the Lukaku we have seen in previous years,” Marotta explains. Lukaku scored 47 goals in 72 Serie A matches for Inter from 2019 to 2021. This season, the counter stands at three goals in fourteen league games.
Marotta compares Lukaku’s current form to that of Marcelo Brozovic. “Both are struggling with injuries and are not the same after the World Cup. Lukaku doesn’t find the dueling power that makes him so strong,” he remarked.
Lukaku was brought back to Chelsea in the summer of 2021 for 115 million euros. Previously he also played for Manchester United, Everton, West Bromwich Albion and Anderlecht.
