Lazio and Roma fans launch flares and fireworks at each other in shocking scenes before Rome derby
LAZIO and Roma fans have launched flares and fireworks at each other in shocking scenes.
The two Rome-based teams were set to face each other in the quarter-final of the Coppa Italia.
Footage shared online showed the rival supporters firing projectiles at each other inside the Stadio Olimpico.
Fans could also be heard directing chants at each other.
Supporters in the Lazio crowd were also visible, waving club flags while flares were fired at them.
There were multiple loud bangs inside the ground as fireworks exploded.
Despite the turbulent atmosphere in the stands, the players continued with their warm-ups on the pitch.
Fans reacted to the footage on social media.
One fan wrote: “Derby is here.”
A second commented: “Even war.”
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Before the match, Lazio and former West Ham star Felipe Anderson spoke about the player’s feelings towards the fierce derby.
He told Lazio Style Radio: “The derby is always a match we have always been very passionate about, we knew there was this possibility of facing Roma in Coppa Italia.
“Every footballer likes to take part in it, it’s a match full of intensity and tension.
“We are used to playing it. It will be difficult. We should play with our hearts and try to win.”
The club’s rivalry spawned into the Derby della Capitale due to political division and fans’ wishes to represent the Italian capital.
It is not the first time the sets of fans have come to blows.
In last year’s derby match, riot police clashed with Roma fans in the streets of Rome.