In a disturbing video that surfaced after the UEFA Europe League final, referee Anthony Taylor, and his wife and daughter were subject to insults and harassment at the hands of AS Roma fans, who hurled insults at him and threw a chair at him at Budapest Airport.
This happened after AS Roma manager Jose Mourinho blamed and abused Anthony Taylor for the penalty shootout loss to Sevilla on Wednesday.
Taylor and his family were escorted out of a cafe and into a secure area by airport security after supporters abused the referee following an ill-tempered final on Wednesday evening, as was seen on social media clips. The videos on Twitter show a chair and a bottle being thrown at Taylor and his family members.
According to a statement issued by Budapest Airport, criminal proceedings have begun against a man who was charged with affray following the incident.
Sevilla won on penalties, handing Roma manager Jose Mourinho his first defeat in a European final after a game in which Premier League referee Taylor issued 14 yellow cards, the most ever in a Europa League game, and played nearly 30 minutes of stoppage time.
AS Roma's manager was quite vocal about Taylor's performance, branding it a disgrace and labelling him 'Spanish'. "It was an intense, vibrant game with a referee who seemed Spanish. It was yellow, yellow, yellow all the time," Mourinho said as quoted by Sky Sports.
The Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL), the English top-tier referees association, released a statement and said, "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," the referees association added. UEFA is still awaiting the referee's report from the match.
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(With India Today inputs)
