Belgium forward Romelu Lukaku and his former teammate at Manchester United, Zlatan Ibrahimovic were involved in a heated exchange during the historic Milan derby on Tuesday night.
Both strikers had their names on the scoresheet as Inter Milan recorded a 2 – 1 win over neigbours and fierce rivals AC Milan in a keenly contested Coppa Italia fixture.
Ibrahimovic handed Milan the lead in the first half before he was sent off just before the hour mark.
Lukaku drew Inter level later on in the second half from the penalty spot, with Christian Eriksen striking the winner in the closing stages of the tie.
However, it was a spat involving Lukaku and Ibra that grabbed headlines, with the pair colliding on the stroke of half-time.
According to Metro, it took the intervention of teammates to separate the two who were squaring it off in the middle of the pitch. It is understood the two players had earlier traded insults, with Ibra telling Lukaku: “Go do your vodoo, you little donkey.”
In his response, Lukaku said: “He wants to talk about mothers? Son of a ****.” During the altercation, Inter boss Antonio Conte and the club’s staff had to hold back Lukaku to ensure he does not escalate the spat further.
It was, however, the second incident that earned Zlatan marching orders as he was already on a yellow card with his Belgian opponent getting booked.
The Swedish tripped Aleksandar Kolarov in the 58th minute of the quarter final tie, leaving the centre referee with no option but to send off the legendary forward.
Both sides will now shift focus to their weekend Serie A fixtures as they continue their title charge. Milan will take on Bologna on Saturday, January 30, with Inter battling Benevento at home.
