Feyenoord Coach Fred Rutten said fans had “harmed the club,” but denied racism and blamed the referee for defeat to Roma.

The Europa League tie was overshadowed by the abhorrent behaviour of the Dutch fans in both legs, as they caused hundreds of thousands of Euros worth of damage to historic monuments in Rome.

On home turf, they threw multiple objects including lighters that prompted play to be suspended for 15 minutes.

Feyenoord Coach Fred Rutten said fans had “harmed the club,” but denied racism and blamed the referee for defeat to Roma.

The Europa League tie was overshadowed by the abhorrent behaviour of the Dutch fans in both legs, as they caused hundreds of thousands of Euros worth of damage to historic monuments in Rome.

On home turf, they threw multiple objects including lighters that prompted play to be suspended for 15 minutes.

“I’ve never experienced anything like this. It was a very strange game,” Rutten told reporters in Rotterdam after a 2-1 defeat.

“The suspension in play does not help the club. It harms Feyenoord. It is unfortunate that happened and I applaud the decision to stop play.”
However, he denied someone throwing an inflatable banana at Gervinho was a racist gesture.

“We have various nationalities within the squad. People are making too big a deal of this.”

Rutten was very critical of the referee Clement Turpin, who sent off Te Vrede.

“The referee had a big impact on the game. He made some questionable decisions. We hoped to end the half on 0-0, but then Roma scored in stoppages.”

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