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Inter Milan bounced back to winning ways on Sunday after their contentious defeat to Liverpool, securing a 2-1 victory at Genoa. With both AC Milan and Napoli dropping points against Sassuolo and Udinese respectively, the result propelled Cristian Chivu's squad to the summit of the Serie A standings.
However, that triumph wasn't sufficient to erase memories of their loss to the Reds, where Dominik Szoboszlai stepped forward to net an 88th-minute winner from the penalty spot following a VAR review after Alessandro Bastoni hauled back Florian Wirtz inside the area.
Inter skipper Lautaro Martinez netted the decisive goal against Genoa. Yet he remained frustrated about the 'injustice' suffered against the Reds when speaking at the Gazzetta Sport Awards on the eve of the match.
"We're disappointed but not angry," he declared on stage whilst collecting the Performance of the Year award. "Because if you lose because of a referee's mistake, there's little you can do.
"We're sorry we threw everything away because of an injustice: if penalties were awarded for every holding foul, the game would never be played.
"Defeats, even if they hurt a lot, make you grow. I get really angry when I lose, but you also have to consider the skill of the opponent.
"Anyway, we've started over (after last season's Champions League final defeat). Maybe some results weren't positive, but it takes a bit of time.
"We have a new coach, Cristian Chivu, who is giving us a lot of energy. From the outside, it may not be obvious, but we know we're improving day by day."
Several Inter Milan players were incensed by the decision to award Liverpool a penalty following last week's defeat at the San Siro. However, such grievances aren't confined to the Serie A heavyweights' changing room. Former Arsenal and Inter shot-stopper Emiliano Viviano has also voiced his disapproval of the decision, branding it as 'the death of football'.
"For me, that stuff is the death of football," he expressed on TV Play, as reported by FC Inter News. "Even a top referee I asked told me that this is madness, not a penalty.
"The insults? I don't care at all. The Liverpool players and manager were struggling to answer questions about this penalty.
"It goes back to my battle with logic: the players are stuck in their positions, one has his back turned; even if he pulls his shirt, it's not a penalty for me.
"And I would have said the same if it had been called on an Italian team, even (my former club) Fiorentina. Even if Alessandro Bastoni is naïve, that's never a penalty."
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