Following death threats, police ask the referee of the Inter Milan vs. Juventus match to stay home.
Italian police have asked the referee of the Inter-Juventus match not to leave his home, following death threats on social media, local media reported on Tuesday. The "Derby d'Italia," which ended with Inter Milan defeating Juventus 3-2 on Saturday in the 25th round, witnessed great tension after referee Federico La Penna sent off Juventus defender Pierre Kalulu in the 42nd minute with a second yellow card for a "phantom" foul on Alessandro Bastoni, which angered the Juventus management and fans. After the sending-off and Juventus' anger, the refereeing official apologizes and admits: the decision was wrong. Juventus fans directed their anger at the referee, who received death threats on social media, prompting police to ask him to stay at home. The players initially insisted that the referee review the video footage, due to the unavailability of Video Assistant Referee (VAR) technology after the second yellow card was given.
After the match, only Damien Comolli and Giorgio Chiellini, the head of international relations, spoke to the media. Three days after the incident, a wave of abuse against referee La Peña swept the internet, including death threats. Bastoni, who was accused by Juventus fans of feigning injury and then celebrating the red card, was also subjected to insults on social media. Gianluca Rocchi, the head of the referees committee in the Italian league, apologized for the error in judgment after the match.
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