Inter Milan President Giuseppe Marotta entered the controversy following the Inter-Juventus match, strongly defending defender Alessandro Bastoni after he was accused of exaggerating the contact that led to Pierre Kalulu's red card.

Marotta emphasized that the player was subjected to an 'exaggerated media campaign,' noting that Bastoni is a 26-year-old player with over 300 matches in the Italian league and has never been involved in controversial incidents.

Marotta admitted that Bastoni made a mistake, but considered such errors natural in football, explaining that talk of simulation is not new and has been part of the game for decades.

He added that the incident does not deserve all this escalation, calling for comprehensive solutions involving players, referees, clubs, and even the Italian federation, with the possibility of tightening penalties for everyone without exception.

Marotta also indirectly criticized Juventus manager Giorgio Chiellini, describing him as a 'young and inexperienced official,' without going into further details about his actions after the match. He also pointed out that the current controversy reflects a broader problem in Italian football related to misunderstandings of the laws and excessive media reactions.

In defending Inter's position, Marotta recalled an old incident between the two teams in 2021, when Juventus was awarded a penalty after what he described as 'clear simulation' by Juan Cuadrado, considering that incident helped Juventus qualify for the Champions League with significant financial returns, in an attempt to emphasize that refereeing mistakes happen to all teams, not just Inter.