ShareTURIN: Romelu Lukaku netted a last-gasp leveler in Inter Milan’s dramatic 1-1 draw at Juventus on Tuesday which left their Italian Cup semi-final all square after the first leg. Belgium striker Lukaku rolled in from the penalty spot deep in stoppage time to keep both teams level ahead of the second leg in Milan later this month, before then being sent off following his celebrations in front of the home fans. Lukaku, who was already on a booking for a late foul on Federico Gatti, put his finger in front of his mouth and told the crowd to “shut up” as his joyous teammates swamped him.
Reports that the 29-year-old had been racially abused by some home supporters as he prepared to take his penalty were not confirmed by either Inter coach Simone Inzaghi or his Juve counterpart Massimiliano Allegri. Juan Cuadrado thought he had given Juventus a lead to take to the San Siro in the 83rd minute of an intense match between bitter rivals in Turin which featured few goalscoring chances and ended with both teams at each other’s throats. Cuadrado and Inter goalkeeper Samir Handanovic were both sent off following the final whistle after a scuffle which continued as the teams went into the tunnel at the Allianz Stadium.
“What happened was that Lukaku’s celebrations were misunderstood, as he always celebrates like that,” said Inzaghi to Mediaset. “We were on top without being able to score, but I can’t criticize my players, it was a good performance.” Lukaku’s spot-kick is good news for Inzaghi who is under pressure after a poor run of results which has led to them dropping to fourth in Serie A. Angel Di Maria was unlucky not to put Juve ahead just after kick-off with a low drive which was brilliantly tipped away by Mattia Perin.
Inter grew into the game and were probably the better team after the break, with Henrikh Mkhitaryan dragging a great chance a whisker wide in the 64th minute after a spell of pressure from the away side. Juve should however have taken the lead in the 77th minute when Arkadiusz Milik somehow failed to poke home Cuadrado’s mishit shot with the goal at his mercy. Cuadrado then found what he thought was the decisive goal when he collected Adrien Rabiot’s diverted cross and finished well past Handanovic before doing a victory jig on the sidelines.
But then Gleison Bremer gift-wrapped a chance for Lukaku to score his sixth goal of a troubled season at Inter with a silly handball, after which all hell broke loose. “I don’t know what happened, I went into the tunnel after the final whistle,” said Allegri. “It’s nothing, just a bit of chaos at the end of an even game.” On Wednesday struggling Cremonese try to secure what would be a shock cup final spot when they host in-form Fiorentina. Lukaku abused Meanwhile, Serie A condemned on Wednesday “all instances of racism” in Italian football after Romelu Lukaku was abused during Inter Milan’s cup semi-final clash at Juventus.
Lukaku scored a stoppage time penalty which secured Inter a 1-1 draw in Tuesday’s first leg but was then sent off after his celebrations in front of the Juve fans earned him a second booking. The Belgium striker held his finger to his mouth and told supporters to “shut up”, but reports of monkey chants were only confirmed late on Tuesday by his representatives Roc Nation after neither Inter nor Juve made any mention of them post-match. “Serie A strongly condemns all instances of racism and any form of discrimination,” Italy’s top division said in a statement.
“A few people in the stands can’t ruin football and don’t represent all the fans at the stadium... Serie A clubs will, as they always have, be able to find the individuals responsible and ban them for life from their grounds.” On Tuesday night Roc Nation Sports International president Michael Yormark demanded an apology from Juve for “hostile and disgusting racist abuse” Lukaku recieved from some home supporters “before, during and after the penalty”. “The Italian authorities must use this opportunity to tackle racism, rather than punish the victim of the abuse,” Yormark added.
The incident was yet another case of racism in Italian football stadiums and came on the day Lazio were handed a suspended one-match stand closure for their supporters’ mass anti-Semitic chanting during last month’s Rome derby. Lazio’s cross-town rivals Roma were also fined 8,000 euros for their fans racially abusing Sampdoria coach Dejan Stankovic on Sunday. Former Red Star Belgrade, Lazio and Inter Milan midfielder Stankovic was targeted with chants calling him a “gypsy” by hardcore home supporters until Roma coach Jose Mourinho demanded they stop. - AFP
