By Andrew Warshaw
May 6- Italian football has suffered a series of further blows to its reputation as Rafa Benitez’s first trophy in charge of Napoli was overshadowed by appalling fan violence.
A 27-year-old Napoli supporter is reportedly fighting for his life after clashes between Napoli and Roma fans before the Italian cup final – even though Roma were not even involved.
Three Napoli fans, five policemen, two match stewards, a firefighter and a Roma fan were reported to have been injured in shootings that delayed the kick-off by 45 minutes. The clashes are thought to have been linked to a long standing rivalry between Napoli and AS Roma Ultras
Unconfirmed reports suggest that some Napoli fans had wanted the game to be cancelled after hearing about the shootings. There were also disturbances inside the stadium, witnessed by Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi who was there with his wife and children, but it was not on the scale of the clashes outside.
Meanwhile, suspicion surrounds an Italian Serie D encounter in which Cavese 1919 lived up to their name by winning 19-5 win over Licata.
Licata, from Sicily, were only able to field nine players, all from the youth team, because of a dispute between the senior players and the club, while their coach was also missing, Italian media said.
Cavese’s coach was also absent having resigned hours before Sunday’s Serie D match after a “request” from the club’s supporters over team selection.
The club, based near Naples, said in a statement on their Facebook page that Francesco Chietti and his staff quit “in response to a request from some fans in the hours before the game to impose two Cavese players on the starting line-up. The coaching staff have taken this decision to avoid possible problems.”
Cavese striker Claudio De Rosa scored nine of the goals but the result is bound to raise suspicion of manipulation, with Italian football so prone to scandal.
Nocerina’s third tier match at Salernitana in November was called off after they made their three permitted substitutions in the first two minutes and five players then went off injured in the next 20, leaving them below the required minimum of seven players on the pitch.
Nocerina players wanted to boycott the match after threats from their own fans who had been banned from attending. Nocerina were later expelled from the competition.