A group of far-right sympathizing Lazio ultras have reportedly confronted their club's new signing Elseid Hysaj after he sang the famous protest song ‘Bella Ciao’ as part of his initiation process last week.
Hysaj joined the Romans recently on a free transfer from rivals Napoli, but his choice of song has supposedly left some supporters angered at the Stadio Olimpico.
An Albanian international, the right-back belted out 'Bella Ciao', which during 1943 and 1945 in the Second World War became the anthem of Italy's anti-fascist resistance.
Supposedly ticking off a portion of the ultras who harbor far-right beliefs, they didn't just attack Hysaj on social media, but also wanted to meet him in person to air their views at a restaurant.
Calciomeracto.com reported that a group headed to the Auronzo Di Cadore training base, but learned that the team had already left a local restaurant once they arrived.
Instead, then, they made for the team's accommodation where Hysaj, sporting director Igli Tare and police officers were confronted.
It is alleged that new Lazio coach and former Chelsea and Napoli boss Maurizio Sarri wasn’t at all happy about the incident, as he has never enjoyed the interference of fans during his previous roles.
Also on rt.com Sarri admits to ‘mistake’ at walking away from Abramovich’s Chelsea as Italian lifts lid on working with director GranovskaiaFurthermore, it is possible that as an Albanian, Hysaj was unaware of the connotations of the song and its standing in Italian history, or that he is a fan of the popular Netflix series 'La Casa de Papel' (known as 'Money Heist' in English), where the song has enjoyed a new, modern-day resurgence through the hit show.