Juventus head coach Luciano Spalletti was delighted with his players’ performance despite the defeat against Inter.
The Bianconeri were the victims of a glaring refereeing mistake that impeded their game. Match official Federico La Penna showed Pierre Kalulu a second yellow card for allegedly blocking Alessandro Bastoni, even though the replays proved that the latter dived, and should have been sent off for simulation, according to Luca Marelli.
For his part, Spalletti expressed his frustration when confronting the referee in the tunnel at half-time, accusing him of ruining Juve’s match.
Luciano Spalletti proud of Juventus peformance against Inter
Curiously, the 66-year-old never spoke to the media, either ahead of the Derby d’Italia (with Manuel Locatelli attending the pre-match press conference) or in the aftermath, with Juventus officials Damien Comolli and Giorgio Chiellini assuming this duty.
Nevertheless, Tuttosport revealed what Spalletti told his players in private following the big debacle at San Siro.
“I’m proud of you all,” said the Certaldo native to the heartbroken Bianconeri stars.
Despite being unfairly reduced to 10 men for the entire second half, Juventus defended valiantly and even threatened to take the lead on a few occasions.
And when Francesco Pio Esposito finally broke their resistance, they managed to drag themselves back by scoring a shocking equaliser through Locatelli.
Although their efforts were eventually outdone by Piotr Zielinski’s late winner, this was still a performance that everyone at Juventus cherished.
Juventus heading to Istanbul for Champions League clash against Galatasaray
With the fiery Derby d’Italia now in the rear-view mirror, the Bianconeri immediately turned their attention to Tuesday’s crucial meeting against Galatasaray in the first leg of the Champions League play-offs.
The Serie A giants will travel to Istanbul on Monday, so Spalletti has decided to ease the pressure off the players by skipping training and focusing on mental recovery, as the Turin-based newspaper revealed.
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