Several Bayer Leverkusen players accused Roma of having played dirty and instigated provocations over the two legs of the Europa League semifinal which the German side won 4-2 on aggregate.
In their post-match media appearances, some members of Xabi Alonso’s team were quoted complaining about Roma’s style of play and attitude on the pitch.
“They talked too much. It felt good to beat them,” said Jeremie Frimpong, while Stasinic – the author of Bayer’s final goal – said, “We knew that Roma would make these somewhat provocative plays. We were prepared for this since last year. You must resist these provocations, you cannot get involved.”
Finally, Granit Xhaka commented, “We knew their style and that of Italian football. We also knew that we could not afford to be provoked and we remained calm.”
