CHELSEA’S loan star Tiemoue Bakayoko and his AC Milan team-mates have been accused of “formenting hatred”.
French midfielder Bakayoko and team-mate Franck Kessie held up the jersey of Lazio’s Francesco Acerbi as a trophy following the defender’s comments.
EPA
Acerbi, 31, had claimed Lazio had a “better team, man for man, than Milan and there is simply no comparison”, before being beaten 1-0 by the Rossoneri.
A mass brawl erupted after the game and Acerbi was furious with Bakayoko and Kessie for mocking him.
The Lazio man said: “I am disappointed because I swapped shirts to put an end to the matter. Stirring up hatred is not sport, but a sign of weakness.”
‘SMALL MEN’
Lazio team-mate Ciro Immobile described the Milan players as “small men” for their actions.
But Bakayoko, who endured a torrid spell at Stamford Bridge after signing from Monaco in 2017, defended the actions.
He wrote on social media: “It was in jest. I didn’t want to disrespect anyone. I apologise to Acerbi if he felt offended.”
Milan boss Genaro Gattuso apologised for his team’s taunting and called for control of players’ use of social media.
He said: “We apologise for that. The time has come for big clubs to start limiting the social media accounts of their professionals.
“They ought to concentrate more on training than twiddling their thumbs on their phones.”
