Bastoni’s elbowing of Duda and Dimarco’s in-your-face exultation of Henry in the crosshairs

“We love soccer, being teased about our passion is hateful.” This was the element that prompted lawyer Michele Croce, 52, from Verona, to file a complaint. At the center of the document is the match between Inter and Verona on January 6, 2024: in the disputed action, a rant by Alessandro Bastoni on Ondrej Duda was not sanctioned and from there was born the goal of Davide Frattesi, decisive in the dying minutes for the Nerazzurri’s victory.

An episode that, from a simple bar or moviola discussion, has now become a matter of legal prominence. “At the match I went with my two sons, Francesco and Lorenzo, then 15 years old. They were excited, for them it was their first away game. After Bastoni’s elbowing we were shocked. We rewatched the episode several times on our phones,” Croce tells Corriere della Sera. Disappointment. On the car ride home, the boys asked their father to do something: “I told them: study the regulations, the laws well and let’s see what can be done.”

The jubilation of Inter’s outside player Federico Dimarco after the penalty missed by Verona striker Thomas Henry in the challenge had sparked controversy, social and otherwise. So Dimarco himself had wanted to intervene personally, with a post on Instagram.

“Did I exult? Yes I cheered and a lot. Without insulting anyone, without rude gestures, I rejoiced a lot for the victory, for the ‘scare’ and for the danger escaped. It is sport and it is also beautiful. Unfortunately, it is also severe and cruel to those on the other side.”

“And I am sorry if all this joy instinctively burst out of me in front of Henry who had just missed the penalty and I cheered in front of him. From the gut, I’m honest. Someone will say that it’s not a beautiful thing and he’s probably right, but I didn’t want to offend anyone so much that at the final whistle, even before celebrating with my teammates, I went to hug him.” Today, almost a year and a half later, there are those who have brought the affair up again…