The racism row involving Inter defender Francesco Acerbi is continuing to rage on following his alleged insults to Napoli’s Juan Jesus, so where do we stand now?
Everything dates back to the Nerazzurri’s Serie A clash with Napoli on the evening of March 17th. In the closing stages of the match, Juan Jesus was seen talking to referee Federico La Penna and pointing to the Kick Racism Out badge on his shirt, reporting that Acerbi ‘had called me a n****r’.
Acerbi then went over to La Penna and attempted to explain himself before going over to apologise to Juan Jesus – at one point he was seen suspiciously gesturing towards teammate Marcus Thuram, causing eyebrows to raise.
The Napoli defender suggested it was just an ‘on-pitch incident’ when speaking to DAZN after the match, but the row continued to rage on as Acerbi was taken out of the Italy training camp in Coverciano, withdrawing from international duty whilst claiming that he hadn’t said anything racist.
Juan Jesus responded again on social media, shedding light on the incident and revealing what was apparently said by Acerbi on the pitch. The Inter centre back has continued to challenge this version of events, la Gazzetta dello Sport highlights.
Three days on, what happens next for Acerbi?
First things first, it appears that referee La Penna did not record Acerbi’s apologies and presumed admittance of the offence in his match report, which is why sports judge Gerardo Mastrandrea asked the FIGC Prosecutor’s Office for a supplementary investigation.
Giuseppe Chinè and the FIGC Prosecutor’s Office are now collecting all available evidence, digging up all relevant video footage and audio. Over the next 48 hours, both Acerbi and Juan Jesus will be interviewed, and once the investigation is complete Chinè will send his report to Mastrandrea.
Regarding sanctions, Article 28 Paragraph 2 of the Code of Sports Justice makes it clear that a player found guilty of ‘discriminatory behaviour’ will be suspended for at least 10 matches, putting the Inter defender at real risk of a lengthy ban.