Fiorentina owner can’t defend Ribery over linesman shove

Fiorentina owner Rocco Commisso has refused to defend Franck Ribery, saying he “was wrong” to push an official during La Viola’s 2-1 defeat to Lazio on Sunday. The Frenchman appeared to shove a linesman in the wake of an irksome defeat for Fiorentina, during which Ribery let his frustration boil over when he was substituted in the second half.
Video footage showed the 36-year-old, who was named Serie A’s player of the month for September, remonstrating with match officials on the pitch as Fiorentina protested against the validity of Lazio’s 89th-minute winner.
Fiorentina claimed that the move which led to Ciro Immobile’s goal began with a foul by Jordan Lukaku on Riccardo Sotil and were baffled as to why the referee did not review the incident on the pitchside monitor – instead relying on a silent check with VAR officials. “Why didn’t he go and have a look?” asked Fiorentina coach Vincenzo Montella. “It’s very serious if the referee does not have a look in a key episode.”
Ribery, who made the move to Tuscany in the summer, took his protests too far and was shown a red card as his own team-mates tried to restrain him following the second shove.
The ex-Marseille and Bayern Munich star is facing a lengthy ban from the authorities and not even Fiorentina’s American owner could find grounds to defend the summer signing’s actions. “Ribery was a bit nervous and he was wrong, even though he had a reason. We’ll see how we move forward,” Commisso told Radio Anch’io Sport.
Ribery has been no stranger to disciplinary trouble during his career with Bayern Munich fining him in January after his foul-mouthed social media tirade at online critics who called the player out for ordering a $1,200 gold-coated steak at a restaurant in Dubai run by celebrity chef Salt Bae.