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Barcelona star responds to claims he spat at Inter Milan player sparking bust-up

Barcelona crashed out of the Champions League at the semi-final stage after Inter Milan secured a 4-3 win in extra time, and the La Liga side could have had Inigo Martinez sent off after he was accused of spitting at Francesco Acerbi

[Inigo Martinez and Francesco Acerbi]

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Barcelona's Inigo Martinez has denied claims he spat at Inter defender Francesco Acerbi during their Champions League defeat

Barcelona defender Inigo Martinez has hit back at claims he spat at Inter Milan rival Francesco Acerbi during their dramatic 4-3 defeat in the Champions League semi-final. Hansi Flick's side agonisingly missed out on the chance to reach the final, losing 7-6 on aggregate after the Italian side staged a remarkable comeback.

The second leg was finely poised at 3-3 following a pulsating first encounter - and the resulting clash at the San Siro was somehow even more entertaining as Inter edged a seven-goal thriller.

Lautaro Martinez opened the scoring before Hakan Calhanoglu's penalty put Inter in dreamland. But Barcelona stunned the home side by scoring three unanswered goals through Eric Garcia, Dani Olmo and Raphinha - who netted just two minutes from full time.

Some Inter Milan fans even left the arena at this point before desperately pleading with stewards to let them back in after Acerbi equalised in the dying minutes of stoppage time. Inter then incredibly sealed their place in the Champions League final after Davide Frattesi scored what proved to be the winner in extra time to cap off a remarkable tie.

But the game was marred by accusations towards Martinez that he spat at Acerbi. Footage appeared to show Martinez spitting in the direction of the Inter defender.

The Spaniard has now revealed that Acerbi tried to celebrate in his ear when Calhanoglu's goal went in, but insisted he was not aiming it at the player. "Acerbi celebrated the goal in my ear, I got angry, but the spit wasnt directed at him; I would have been sent off," Martinez said after the game.

Commentators speculated that Martinez could land himself in hot water, but ended up avoiding punishment - though pundits Wayne Rooney and Sturridge admitted he was lucky to stay on the pitch.

Rooney said: "You certainly don't want to see that in a football game or anywhere. If he has spat, then he'll get a punishment that he'll deserve."

[Barcelona and Inter Milan players clash]

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The pair clashed during the heated game at the San Siro, which finished 4-3

Meanwhile, Sturridge added: "Absolutely right. If he's done that, then it's not good - it's not necessary, it's not needed. We'll let the people do their job and see if he's actually done it."

Martinez went on to criticise the referee Szymon Marciniak for his decision-making, suggesting he favoured Inter Milan, but claimed Barcelona could leave "with our heads held high" overall.

"Everyone saw today that the decisions fell on the same side, but I dont want this to be talked about. In the end, he (the referee) had to make decisions and he did them like this. Its a shame, he said. Were leaving with our heads held high, everything possible was done."

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