Binaghi slams Serie A over fixture chaos, refuses to shift Italian Open final | OneFootball

Italian tennis chief Angelo Binaghi has attacked Lega Serie A amid a farcical Week 37 schedule and ruled out moving the Italian Open men’s final.

According to Football Italia, five matches were slated for Sunday at 11.30 UK time, 12.30 CEST, but local authorities ordered them to Monday at 19.45 UK, 20.45 CEST. An emergency appeal to the TAR tribunal was sent back to the authorities, who convened a summit this evening.

If there is no agreement, the TAR is due to rule on Friday, less than 48 hours before the planned kick-offs. The affected fixtures are Roma-Lazio, Como-Parma, Genoa-Milan, Juventus-Fiorentina and Pisa-Napoli.

Serie A proposed delaying the start of the tennis final to create space for the Rome Derby, a suggestion rejected out of hand. “The supervisor of the ATP tour is here and this tournament is organised differently to a football competition,” said Binaghi.

“They can change whenever they like, we cannot, because we have other obligations. And we cannot be expected to move our final just because some idiot typed up the fixture list with his feet.”

The clash was always likely once the Rome Derby was set for the same weekend as the Italian Open, and synchronised kick-offs for fairness have compounded the problem.

Bringing the derby forward to Saturday was not possible, as Lazio played Inter in the Coppa Italia Final on Wednesday evening.

Source: Football Italia