Roma Coach Rudi Garcia has defended captain Francesco Totti after criticism from Gianluigi Buffon and Juventus” data-scaytid=”4″>Juventus.
Roma Coach Rudi Garcia has defended captain Francesco Totti after criticism from Gianluigi Buffon and Juventus.
The Giallorossi lost 3-2 at Juventus Stadium in the last round of Serie A fixtures, amid controversy that prompted Totti to declare that Juventus should ‘have their own League’.
The 38-year-old’s comments drew a critical response from Juventus goalkeeper Buffon, but Garcia believes his No 10 should be shown more respect.
“On Juve all I’ll say is that it was shameful, the reaction from the stands and from the bench. It’s unacceptable.
“When Il Capitano speaks he must be respected,” Garcia told a Press conference ahead of the Chievo game.
“He’s a huge figure in football, who has strong values. I think he had a feeling of injustice after the match, because these values had been betrayed. He’s a football legend, and should be respected.”
Garcia himself seemed keen to move on from the controversy surrounding the game which has been rumbling on over the international break.
“The problem is that too many days have passed without any games. That’s why we talked at length about this.
“For me the game was the opposite of a defeat. We were strong, we scored two goals and could have scored another two. I’m proud of my players, we showed strength and personality.
“I have rewatched the game. The pictures speak for themselves.
“Even the best Italian referees can suffer with the pressure of a match like that, because it was between the top two teams.”
The fallout from the game has led FIGC President Carlo Tavecchio to submit an official request to FIFA to allow video replays in Serie A from next season, and Garcia believes it would be a step forward.
“I’ve talked about technology, not replays. We have it for goal-line calls. There is specialist technology and the last game proved that it’s important, as in tennis, to know if a foul is inside or outside the box, whether it’s a penalty or not.
“It would be a step forward to not argue about one game for 14 days.”