Francesco Acerbi’s wife hit back after the Inter defender was cleared of racially abusing Juan Jesus due to a lack of evidence, but many fans called the decision ‘a scandal’ for Serie A.

The incident occurred during the 1-1 draw with Napoli at San Siro on March 17, when Juan Jesus was caught on camera telling the referee that he had received a racist insult.

Acerbi then seemed to apologise to the defender, which is also the version that the Napoli man gave when speaking to DAZN straight after the final whistle.

However, after Acerbi was excluded from the Italy squad over this situation, the Inter player insisted he had not used a racist term and that Juan Jesus “misunderstood.”

He was cleared today “due to a lack of evidence providing reasonable certainty” and the reactions have been swift on social media.

That included Acerbi’s wife Claudia, who wrote “Now wash your mouth out!” on Instagram.

She then posted a picture of herself holding a glass of white wine and winking.

“I am toasting to those who insult my family. To those who threaten the life of my children. To keyboard warriors. To those who for days pelted me and my children with insults. Cin Cin, you need it.”

For many, this was just another example of Italian football not taking the issue of racism seriously, as the judge in this case confirmed he believed Juan Jesus, but had no other corroborating evidence other than his word.

It was pointed out this incident occurred during the weekend when ‘No To Racism’ was the campaign, complete with patches on the jerseys and statements read out by coaches and players in interviews.

The main thought was: “What did Acerbi apologise for, then?”

The Inter defender certainly went over and seemed to apologise for something he had said or done, which doesn’t seem to fit with the version he provided.

He could’ve just told Juan Jesus that he had misunderstood and given the version of events provided to media and judges later.

The general response was that it was another “scandal” for Serie A, who already have a terrible reputation when it comes to dealing with racist abuse from players and above all fans.

6 thought on “Reactions to Acerbi racism verdict and Juan Jesus”
  1. Susy hates Inter so much, she was shaking with anger when writing this article. You should relax more and your life, living in hatred is suffering

  2. If there is no proof then he is not guilty, why should you punish someone if there is no evidence.

  3. “ti faccio nero” is not a racist term. Anyone who speaks Italian knows that. Anyone who doesn’t speak Italian can’t go past the word “nero”. Educate yourself Omar.

  4. This is a difficult situation – because without any other video or witness evidence how can you prove his guilt? I think Acerbi got away with it this time. I don’t think he is innocent but, as his guilt can’t be proved, he is ‘not guilty’. The problem, for him, is that he is now – forever guilty in the minds of many.

  5. When there is no proof how can people complain that Italian football has gone backwards? What are they supposed to do, ban him for maybe being racist?
    There are a number of factors that need to be taken into account, language barrier being one. Also 20 other players didn’t hear anything?
    If he said the italian equivalent to ‘ i’d beat you black and blue’ then as *catennacio max* correctly pointed out, that isn’t racist at all.

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