Lazio winger Nani had to be separated from a group of fans on board a flight to Rome last weekend.
After playing out a 2-2 draw with Cagliari in Serie A, Lazio’s players were on a flight home when Nani, who is on loan from Valencia, became involved in a heated exchange in the air.
The former Manchester United man reacted furiously after supporters insulted his style of play, according to ESPN.
Video footage, which was obtained by Sky Sport Italia, shows the flight’s captain demanding calm from the passengers after Nani was woken up by the heckling fans and tried to confront them.
Teammates Lucas Leiva, Sergej Milinkovic-Savic and Wallace reportedly had to restrain Nani and ensure that the incident didn’t descend into anything physical.
The 31-year-old came off the bench for the final 15 minutes of Sunday’s game, which ended with an injury-time equaliser courtesy of Ciro Immobile.
Being forced to settle for a bit-part role with Lazio likely hadn’t sat well with Nani all season but the incident at the weekend is believed to be the final straw and he is not expected to stay on at the Italian club beyond the summer.
“At Manchester and elsewhere, it never happened that we had to take a regular scheduled flight and be exposed to things like this,” Nani told Cittaceleste.
