07 March 2024 , 10:30
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Two Brighton fans have been stabbed and robbed in Rome by a gang of masked men ahead of their Europa League clash with Italian side Roma.
The supporters, aged 27 and 28, were set upon while leaving a bar on Wednesday at around midnight, with the attack taking place in Via Cavour in the heart of the Italian capital.
The men were hospitalised with minor injuries and have since been discharged. One of the supporters on a Seagulls fan club forum revealed they had been "stuck in a hospital corridor for six hours".
Staff from restaurants in the area raised the alarm after witnessing the attack and police were called. It has been reported that a gang of six or seven masked individuals were involved in the attack, with the victims' wallets being stolen.
A Brighton fan said: "Me and a couple of my mates got attacked in Rome last night after leaving a bar. Just want to say that every Brighton fan in Rome please be careful. It's so dangerous out here and worse than Marseille."
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Brighton released a statement for fans ahead of the match with safety information for those travelling. A section warned of street crime in the area and passed on local police advice to avoid wearing colours.
Roberto De Zerbi's men travel to the Stadio Olimpico on Thursday evening for their Europa League last-16 first-leg clash. It is suggested that around 4,000 fans have made the trip to the Italian capital to watch the Seagulls in action.
Speaking ahead of the first leg, Italian boss De Zerbi said: "We'll see tomorrow whether the stadium will intimidate us or not, we played at Old Trafford and we won, we drew 2-2 in Marseille, we played at AEK Athens and we won. I know the push of the Olimpico, let's see tomorrow, it will be a test for us.
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"I believe that we need to be given even more strength, I have been coaching for 10 years and I have changed five or six teams, I feel that these Brighton players are temperamentally closer to me in terms of pride, hunger and dignity, motivation, values, in how they experience football.
"The old and the young live football like me, I'm confident but the pitch will decide. Regarding injuries, I'd say that it is a topic to be taken in two ways, either we cry and say how many important players we have out, or we take it as an opportunity because we aim to go through and compete with all these injured players.
"Nobody gives us a guarantee that with Mitoma, Joao Pedro, March, Milner, or with Enciso in form we will get through, I don't want to hear about injuries, we have enough for tomorrow."
The return leg with Roma is set to take place next Thursday at the Amex Stadium. Brighton secured their spot in the knockout rounds after topping a group that included Marseille, Ajax and AEK Athens. The Seagulls lost just one of their six group games.
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