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Zlatan/Lukaku famous pitch clash in street art ahead Sunday derby

 

Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Romelu Lukaku’s on-pitch clash has been commemorated in street art ahead of a potentially title-deciding Milan derby on Sunday.

The mural, by an unidentified artist, appeared outside the clubs’ shared San Siro stadium in the early hours on Sunday morning, a week before the sides play again.

It has a caption, written in English, which reads: ‘Face to face, heart to heart.’

In the Coppa Italia on January 26, the last time the two sides played, AC Milan striker Ibrahimovic scored and was then sent off for two bookable offences, the first of which was for an aggressive altercation with Romelu Lukaku.

Lukaku scored a second-half penalty and Christian Eriksen then slotted home a 97th-minute free-kick to complete a dramatic stoppage-time comeback for Inter Milan.

Both strikers were booked following their feud, with the pair squaring up, clashing heads and exchanging insults, with audio picked up on camera with no crowd in the stadium.

The Belgian was furious at what Ibrahimovic said and needed to be held back by team-mates after what he heard.

Ibrahimovic, now 39, was criticised on social media for his comments but denied using racist language, and was later cleared of the charge.

AC Milan won the reverse fixture 2-1 in October, but lost the Coppa Italia quarter-final last month and suffered a shock 2-0 defeat to Spezia last Saturday.

Read AlsoCoppa Italia row: Zlatan keeps date with IFF investigators

Inter, led by former Chelsea boss Antonio Conte, have since overtaken their intra-city rivals with a 3-1 win against Lazio and currently lie one point and one place above Stefano Pioli’s side ahead of Sunday’s crucial Serie A showdown.

 

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