Bleacher Report, a popular sports media platform, is under fire for a social media post deemed insensitive following Italy‘s disappointing exit from Euro 2024.
The Azzurri’s reign as champions was ended by Switzerland in a convincing 2-0 victory in the round of 16.
Italy’s lackluster performance was a far cry from their dominant Euro 2020 campaign.
Manager Luciano Spalletti opted for a revamped squad, missing several key players from their previous triumph. Switzerland, on the other hand, displayed exceptional energy throughout the match.
Remo Freuler opened the scoring from a Ruben Vargas assist, and Vargas himself doubled the lead with a spectacular goal early in the second half.
Despite a valiant effort, Italy, missing the influence of midfield maestro Jorginho who was surprisingly benched for the match, failed to mount a significant comeback.
Granit Xhaka, Jorginho’s former teammate at Arsenal, controlled the midfield for Switzerland, while Gianluigi Donnarumma made some crucial saves for Italy.
Ultimately, Spalletti’s men couldn’t find their rhythm, crashing out of the Euros much earlier than anticipated.
While the focus should have been on Switzerland’s well-deserved victory and Italy’s shortcomings, Bleacher Report’s Twitter account sparked outrage with a graphic depicting spaghetti being poured over Jorginho’s head.
The imagery was deemed disrespectful by many fans, particularly Arsenal supporters considering Jorginho currently plays for their club.
Additionally, the fact that Jorginho didn’t even start the match added further fuel to the fire.
Bleacher Report, owned by Warner Bros. Discovery Sports, has a history of attracting criticism for clickbait headlines and prioritizing entertainment over journalistic accuracy.
Some fans questioned if Bleacher Report would use a similar mocking graphic with English player Phil Foden being showered with beans if England were to be eliminated.