Jose Mourinho hit with a four-match European BAN by UEFA after abusing Anthony Taylor
Jose Mourinho has been hit with a four-match European ban by UEFA after abusing referee Anthony Taylor following Roma's Europa League final defeat.
Mourinho had furiously confronted Taylor in the car park at Budapest's Puskas Arena in the wake of his side's loss to Sevilla and labelled the official a 'f***ing disgrace'.
Before flying home, Taylor and his family were mobbed by a group of Roma hoodlums inside the terminal at Budapest Airport and escorted by police officers.
The suspension means Mourinho will miss four Europa League group-stage games next season. It is not known whether the punishment is a touchline or stadium ban.
In a statement issued today, UEFA's Control, Ethics and Disciplinary Body handed the Serie A club a series of punishments as a result of their tempers flaring.
Mourinho was singled out for 'directing abusive language at a match official'.
He had unleashed a savage rant at Taylor, a regular fixture for Premier League games, during and after Roma's dramatic penalty shootout defeat last month.
Speaking post-match, a hot-headed Mourinho accused Taylor of favouring Sevilla with a string of controversial decisions and suggested he 'seemed Spanish to me'.
Roma's supporters were equally riled up about Taylor and more than a hundred of them cornered the 44-year-old as he and his family hurried through a crowd.
Security staff struggled to keep a barrier between the referee, his family and the chanting mob, with vile language and even items hurled towards the group.
Eventually, they were shepherded to their departure gate and departed.
The Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), the body responsible for refereeing in the UK, described the incident as 'unjustified and abhorrent'.
A statement said: 'PGMOL is aware of videos circulating on social media showing Anthony Taylor and his family being harassed and abused at Budapest Airport.
'We are appalled at the unjustified and abhorrent abuse directed at Anthony and his family as he tries to make his way home from refereeing the UEFA Europa League final. We will continue to provide our full support to Anthony and his family.'
Roma have been fined €50,000 (£43,000) and banned from selling tickets to their away supporters for their first Europa League group game next season due to the 'lighting of fireworks, throwing of objects, acts of damage and crowd disturbances'.
The club were also slapped with a €5,000 (£4,300) for 'improper conduct'.
'Next year we won't be playing the Champions League and that's a good thing because we're not made for it,' Mourinho said.
'And let's hope that Taylor, only officiates games in the Champions League and does the same bull**** there that he did tonight, and not in the Europa League.'
Henry
just love writing about football and playing video games, love my quiet time also. contact me @ [email protected]
