#TBT: FIERY FIXTURES
History
There were Viola protests in 2009/10 after Huntelaar’s goal and Rossoneri remonstrations in 2011/12 after Seedorf wasn’t awarded a penalty. However, Fiorentina v AC Milan on April 7 2013 was the most controversial confrontation between the two sides. It was the first time that Riccardo Montolivo, former Fiorentina captain, returned to Florence wearing Rossoneri colours. And that’s not all, the two teams were battling for third place, which meant Champions League football, and they had taken several digs at each other over the preceding weeks: especially during Massimiliano Allegri and Vincenzo Montella’s respective press conferences.
After the feisty build up, it was time for the match, in which Montolivo was greeted by a chorus of whistles. With the crowd behind him, Pizarro tried to dribble out for the Viola but lost the ball and Montolivo himself put the Rossoneri ahead. Riccardo calmed his teammates down and the game continued until the 39th minute when referee Tagliavento sent off the Fiorentina defender Tomović. At that moment, the Viola stadium became a cauldron until the ironic applause of the entire Fiorentina crowd when Flamini doubled the Rossoneri lead. The Viola also lost Jovetić to injury, but thanks to two penalties they drew 2-2. The controversy didn’t end there though, with AC Milan complaining post-game for a handball in the area after a Pazzini header. At the end of it all, AC Milan would qualify for the Champions League anyway, but what a heated encounter it was in Florence that afternoon!
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