The fall-out from Roma making too many substitutions in the Coppa Italia against Spezia continues, as it emerges Lorenzo Pellegrini tried to warn his team.

The game ended 4-2 in extra time for Spezia last night, but Roma would’ve lost by default anyway because they made six substitutions rather than the allocated five.

The fall-out from Roma making too many substitutions in the Coppa Italia against Spezia continues, as it emerges Lorenzo Pellegrini tried to warn his team.

The game ended 4-2 in extra time for Spezia last night, but Roma would’ve lost by default anyway because they made six substitutions rather than the allocated five.

It seems they either lost count or misunderstood the rules, which state extra time brings an extra ‘slot’ to make a substitution after the 90 minutes, but not an extra substitution.

Although five changes are allowed during Serie A and Coppa Italia games, these must be made during at most three ‘slots’ – not counting half-time – to ensure not too much time is wasted.

Footage emerged of Roma midfielder Pellegrini talking to coach Paulo Fonseca and their staff when he saw the fifth and sixth substitution being made.

He repeatedly said: ‘This is the sixth, you know… This is the sixth. It’s the sixth.’

Pellegrini was ignored and Roma would’ve been eliminated from the Coppa Italia even if they had managed to win the match.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *