Roma striker Edin Dzeko could be given a lengthy ban if allegations of spitting at the referee during Wednesday night’s 7-1 defeat at Fiorentina are confirmed.
Dzeko, who was shown a straight red card for dissent in the 72nd minute of the Coppa Italia quarterfinal clash in Florence, already faces a ban for his dismissal.
Caught on video and in still images, the 32-year-old appeared to spit at referee Gianluca Manganiello and his fate will be confirmed when the official’s report is published.
Dzeko’s ban will see him miss the crunch Serie A game against AC Milan on Sunday, as the sides race for Champions League football.
Meanwhile, Roma coach Eusebio Di Francesco said he is not contemplating resigning.
“Resignation? Let’s leave that sort of talk aside, the thought has never entered my mind,” he told reporters.
“I think any sort of comment would be superfluous, whether it be technical or tactical. All I can do is apologise. It was a terrible performance from every point of view.”
The defeat came three days after Roma squandered a three-goal lead in a 3-3 draw at Atalanta in Serie A and missed a chance to move back into the top four of the standings.
“I want to get inside the lads’ heads and understand what is going on,” said Di Francesco, whose team have suffered embarrassing league defeats to Bologna, SPAL and Udinese this season.
“A few games back people thought the squad had bounced back, and instead we collapsed again too easily,” he said.
“The main thing is the mentality, that ability to keep battling away in games even when things are going wrong – to stay together when things are going badly, not having the wrong attitude during the game.”
Information from Reuters was used in this report
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