Chievo defender Cacciatore punished for emulating ‘Mourinho gesture’ in Juventus loss

Chievo defender Fabrizio Ciacatore (L) and Man United boss Jose Mourinho [Photo: Courtesy]

Juventus moved to the top of Serie A on Saturday night, but Chievo defender Fabrizio Cacciatore took the headlines after being sent off for a handcuffs gesture - alleging that the match was fixed.

Juve eventually saw off a resolute Chievo when the home side were down to nine men, thanks to goals from Gonzalo Higuain and Sami Khedira.

Chievo had seen midfielder Samuel Bastien sent off in the first period, for two yellow cards.

But it was the Donkeys' second red - which saw Cacciatore dismissed - that provided the game's big talking point.

It all started with a tussle in the Juventus penalty area between Cacciatore and Kwadwo Asamoah, who appeared to shove the Chievo man.

As the game continued, Cacciatore remained on the floor, before being handed medical assistance.

With Chievo already down to 10 men and defending a Juve corner, Cacciatore didn't want to exit the pitch, but the referee insisted. However, as he walked to the side of the pitch however, Cacciatore repeatedly made the handcuff gesture to the crowd and the cameras.

The gesture in Italian football has previously been used to imply match-fixing, and Jose Mourinho - during his time as Inter Milan boss - was handed a three-match ban and €40,000 fine for doing it.

Now Cacciatore is set to follow, having been handed a straight red card.

Chievo coach Rolando Maran had been furious with a 'nit-picking' refereee, but had no problem with Cacciatore's dismissal.

“There was no time-wasting, because the medics never got to the player, so there was no waste of time. I don’t see why he had to go off the field at all. It was irrelevant and play resumed straight away,” Maran told Mediaset Premium.

“The gesture he made was wrong, but there was no need to send him to the sidelines when taking a short corner and already down to 10 men.

“There was no time wasted and we were told recently by the referees in a summit that if no time was spent on medical staff entering the field, then it’s unnecessary to send the player off the field.

“When you try so hard, put in so much effort and see such nit-picking… A player can lose his head in a tense moment, but when down to nine men, you are left with frustration and anger.

“I don’t see why the referee had to make us defend a corner with a man down. We needed to send a strong signal as a team and prove the 5-1 defeat to Lazio was not a genuine reflection of our performances. We had the right approach, resisted with 10 men, but down to nine we couldn’t anymore.