Spalletti explains post-match quarrel with Fiorentina attacker: “Don’t touch me” | OneFootball

Juventus manager Luciano Spalletti was certainly in no mood to exchange pleasantries with Fiorentina forward Albert Gudmundsson, whom he accused of unsporting behaviour.

The Bianconeri hosted their Tuscan rivals in their final home fixture of the season. This was considered a must-win game for Juve to maintain their narrow advantage over the chasing pack in the Champions League race.

However, the home side put on a poor display, suffering a 0-2 defeat courtesy of Cher Ndour and Rolando Mandragora.

Luciano Spalletti was in a foul mood after agonising Juventus defeat

This result saw Juventus tumble from third place in the table to sixth, with every other result in the European battle going against them.

With only one round in the season, the Old Lady needs a miracle to sneak into the Top four spots.

After the game, a disgruntled Spalletti acknowledged his role in the defeat, while taking issue with reporters labelling this game and others as ‘do-or-die’ fixtures.

Nevertheless, the 67-year-old didn’t only argue with reporters, but he also had a go at Gudmundsson, who tried to shake his hand after the game.

The Juventus boss was infuriated with the Icelander’s time-wasting antics during the game, and wasn’t willing to let it slide.

Why Spalletti refused to shake hands with Albert Gudmundsson

Footage showed the former Italy boss arguing with the Fiorentina attacker, who looked bemused, and tried to calm him down by placing a hand on his shoulder, which further antagonised the manager

“He took a ball that had gone out and threw it back onto the pitch to stop play in an unsporting way,” explained Spalletti in his post-match press conference via JuventusNewsw24.

“Then he came over to greet me, and I told him not to touch me. He did something unsporting, and I didn’t want to shake his hand. He picked the wrong person.”

This isn’t the first time that Spalletti has been involved in this sort of incident. In November 2021, He famously refused to shake the hand of Spartak Moscow’s head coach, Rui Vitoria, following a Napoli defeat in the Europa League.