The Italy international threatened to walk off during the game at the Stadio Bentegodi after hearing something from the far end of the arena, where the hardline ultras sit.
“I am not afraid to say there were no racist chants today. They might’ve jeered and mocked the great player, but there was nothing there. Nothing,” Croatian coach Juric told Sky Sport Italia.
“I’ve been called ‘sh***y gypsy’ many times and Italy is moving towards this general idea of blaming foreigners for everything, but this was not the case today. You can ask him, there was nothing there. I am disgusted by racist abuse and I will be the first to condemn it when it happens, but this was not it.They provoked him with jeers and sarcastic chants, but they were not racist. Anything else is a lie”, he strongly ensured.