Totti to miss Rome derby after being hit by ban

Roma captain Francesco Totti will miss Sunday’s Rome derby against Serie A leaders Lazio after on Tuesday being handed a one game ban for his red card against Lecce at the weekend.

The 34-year-old was also fined 20,000 euros after receiving his marching orders following a spat with Uruguayan Ruben Olivera, who was likewise banned for a game.

Totti was hit with the added fine because after his dismissal he charged after Olivera and had to be restrained by several Roma officials as he headed down the players’ tunnel.

The Italian sporting justice body explained it’s reason for Totti’s extra punishment saying: “It was for having hit an opponent as well as having acted in an aggressive manner towards an opponent on his return to the changing rooms following his sending off.”

Olivera tripped Totti off the ball with the Roma captain reacting by pushing the Lecce midfielder.

It is not the first time Totti has been involved in controversial incidents in a brilliant, but at times chequered, career.

During the 2004 European Championships he was sent off for spitting at Denmark’s Christian Poulsen.

He was back in the spotlight for the wrong reasons during last season’s Italian Cup final in which he was dismissed late on after wildly kicking out at Inter Milan’s Mario Balotelli.

Roma coach Claudio Ranieri had defended his player, claiming referee Andrea Gervasoni had over-reacted.

“His reaction was excessive because he felt, as we all did, that the sending off was unfair,” he said after the game.

“The referee should have managed the situation differently, the dismissal seemed extremely harsh.”