Inter slipped to their first defeat of the season on Sunday night after what was a thrilling encounter in a 2-1 win for rivals Juventus at San Siro.
The two sides look set to battle it out for the Serie A title this season, but Antonio Conte suffered his first major disappointment of the campaign with a loss against his old club.
SEE MORE: Video: Juventus stun Antonio Conte’s Inter early on with world class Dybala finish
That enabled Juve to go back top of the standings ahead of the international break, but there was a moment in the encounter which raised some eyebrows and created a furious backlash from some Inter fans, as noted by Corriere dello Sport.
As seen in the video below, Bonucci saw Juventus given a key decision late on in the game, and he was seemingly keen to show his approval to referee Gianluca Rocchi and went on to give him a high five.
While it seems like an innocent gesture and the referee’s natural reaction was to not leave the Italian stalwart hanging, it’s hardly appropriate behaviour from an official as it leaves him open to accusations of showing bias to one side.
Ultimately, he will have made the decision that he felt was right at the time, but Bonucci’s reaction and his response will certainly have angered some rival fans as it’s not often you see a player and the referee so pally with each other.
That’s not to suggest anything untoward went on, but it’s probably not the smartest move from the referee…
Bonucci & Rocchi gave eachother a high fife, for not giving a red card to emre can. ?? I have no words for this. pic.twitter.com/eVIvgSW3L5
— AC Forza Milan/News (@ACForzaMilano) October 7, 2019