Serie A official Davide Massa was asked about his personal experiencing as a referee in the recent Rome derby.
Given the heated atmosphere at the Stadio Olimpico on Sunday, Massa was asked to discuss his impressions while overseeing two city rivals in Roma and Lazio.
During the event Orientamenti 2023, Massa said to the audience in attendance, “Football matches are not all the same. Derbies are even more different from the others. It doesn’t change the preparation time for a derby but you know you’re going to referee a different match.”
“My dream was to referee all the derbies, and I achieved it,” he added.
“The Rome derby is even more complicated. In Genoa there is a lot of rivalry but a healthy one: they are all colleagues, schoolmates who then go to the stadium together, some with the Genoa scarf and some with the Sampdoria scarf. In Rome the rivalry is completely different.”
“You have to know about situations that you usually don’t have in your typical Serie A match. You have to prevent conflicts between players, and do something more to not lose control of the game.”
