A serious incident occurred involving Alex Shpendi, father of Empoli striker Stven. During the Serie C match between Cesena and Olbia, the father of the Albanian striker ran onto the field, charging towards the Sardinian club's goalkeeper Rinaldi and punching him in the face. Previously, one of his two sons, Cristian, had been hit and forced to leave due to an eyebrow injury. Cesena immediately disassociated itself from the incident, which occurred after the match had ended.

In regards to the incident, Steven and Cristian Shpendi's father issued his apologies to Tgr Rai of Emilia Romagna, upon leaving the Cesena police station: «I apologize for this ugly act, to all the people, to the Cesena club, to all those who work in Cesena. I know them; they are great people, I have let them down. I apologize a hundred thousand times. As a father, I lost my head a bit».