Inter star blasted as 'cheat' as Serie A chief is forced to apologise for 'clearly wrong' Juventus red card

That apology will count for little in the grand scheme of things as Juve have already seen precious points slip through their grasp. They were left fuming when the final whistle blew in Milan.

France international defender Kalulu, who is said to be attracting transfer interest from the Premier League, was given his marching orders in the 42nd minute. He was shown a second yellow card after supposedly pulling at the shirt of Inter star Bastoni - who had thrown himself to the turf and called for a caution.

Replays showed that no contact had been made by Kalulu, but VAR cannot intervene in the distribution of yellow cards - meaning that the decision stood. To rub salt in the wounds, Juve went on to see Inter snatch a 90th-minute winner.

Juve’s head coach Luciano Spalletti and football director Giorgio Chiellini confronted referee Federico La Penna at half-time to express their frustration. Ex-Italy international Chiellini said afterwards when fronting up to the press: “What happened is unacceptable. We are here and not Luciano Spalletti for this very reason.”

Chief executive Damien Comolli went on to say, as he refused to let the Bianconeri suffer in silence: “It was a total injustice. Juve have lost three points. But Italian football has lost even more. The first message is for our fans - I’m sorry for what they saw. We cannot fight, win, or play under these circumstances. The second is for Juve - we are united against injustice and we will not give up.”

Serie A’s referee designator, Gianluca Rocchi, has now addressed the incident. He has acknowledged that a big decision was incorrect, while airing his regret at VAR being unable to step in, but has also called out those that seek to “cheat” the match officials.

Rocchi has told Ansa: “We are very disappointed, both with La Penna’s decision, which was clearly wrong, and with the fact that VAR could not be used to rectify it.

“La Penna is mortified and we sympathise with him, but I have to tell you the truth: he is not the only one who got it wrong, because there was a clear simulation. The latest in a long series in a league where they try everything they can to cheat us.”

Rocchi insists that Serie A officials are “capable of taking responsibility” for their errors, as they admit to getting the odd decision wrong, but has criticised prominent coaches for being less than supportive. He added: “They have never helped us, but have made things for difficult for us.”

He went on to say, when continuing to point fingers at players that bend the rules: “I believe that someone should examine their conscience. To be clear, I am referring to those who go out on the pitch and behave in a certain way.”

Inter’s victory over Juve has seen them pull eight points clear of arch-rivals AC Milan at the top of the Serie A table. Their clash with the Bianconeri was locked at 1-1 when Kalulu was dismissed, with the game very much up for grabs.

Juve battled bravely to restore parity through Manuel Locatelli in the 83rd minute, but suffered a late sting in the tale courtesy of Piotr Zielinski. Spalletti’s side remain fifth in the table as a result, 15 points adrift of leaders Inter. They will be able to call upon Kalulu for the first leg of a Champions League knockout phase play-off clash with Turkish giants Galatasaray on Tuesday, but will be without him - as a ban is served - when playing host to Cesc Fabregas’ Como on Saturday.