Mourinho’s Roma fined by Serie A for slow ball boy tactics

AS Roma have been fined €10,000 by Serie A after their ball boys intentionally slowed down Sunday’s league match against Monza.

Jose Mourinho’s side secured a dramatic 1-0 victory over Monza thanks to Stephan El Shaarawy’s 90th-minute winner.

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The Italian sports judge ruled that Roma’s ball boys took too long to recover the ball after the home team scored the winning goal.

A league statement said: “Roma, as a matter of objective responsibility, of having its own ball boys, after the goal was scored, systematically slowed down the regular resumption of the match, forcing the referee to extend the additional time of two minutes.”

Mourinho was also handed a one-match touchline ban after being sent off towards the end of the match for mocking the Monza bench by making a crying gesture.

With the red card, Mourinho will not be on the bench for Roma’s next league match, away to his former club Inter Milan.

The Portuguese manager has been very vocal in the past about his thoughts on ball boys.

During his time at Tottenham Hotspur, Mourinho praised a club ball boy for quickly throwing the ball for Serge Aurier to make a quick throw that sparked the equalizer in a 4–2 Champions League win over the ‘Olympiakos.

“I like intelligent ball boys, like I was,” Mourinho said at the time. “I was a brilliant ball boy when I was a kid. This kid today was brilliant. He reads the game, understands the game and made an assist.”

However, the former Manchester United manager criticized Old Trafford’s ball boys for being slow to return the ball and replaced them with academy payers.

In 2014, while at Chelsea, Mourinho lashed out at Newcastle United’s ball boys for wasting time during his team’s 2-1 defeat at St. James Park.