Inter Chairman Giuseppe Marotta said Monday that defender Alessandro Bastoni was wrong to take the dive that led to Juventus defender Pierre Kalulu getting a second yellow card in Saturday's match between the teams.

    But he also said that the media storm created by the case had gone too far and that Bastoni should not lose his place in the Italy squad.

"Our position is very simple," Marotta told a press conference before a meeting of the Serie A league.
    "I'm here because we've noticed that the media has taken a truly over-the-top stance on what happened.
    "First and foremost, the player has been the target of media pile-on that goes beyond what actually happened.
    "A lad who is an asset for our national team made a mistake.
    "Some are even questioning whether he should be in the next call-ups for the national team, which is absolutely unfair".
    Marotta, the former Juventus CEO, pointed out that the roles were reversed in similar situations in the past.
    "I just wanted to recall a small episode regarding the case, a Juventus-Inter match in 2021, perhaps on the final day of the championship.
    "With the score 2-2, a penalty was awarded to Juventus following a clear simulation by (Juan) Cuadrado, with (Gianpaolo) Calvarese refereeing.
    "Subsequently, both the referee and the technical authorities confirmed that it was a clear dive.
    "With that last-minute victory, Juventus qualified for the Champions League, which brought in a whopping 60-€70 million euros in revenue".
    Serie A leaders Inter won Saturday's match 3-2.  (see related).
   

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