Gennaro Gattuso Slaps Youth Player For Holding Opposition Shirt

Gennaro Gattuso wasn't afraid to make his feelings known during his playing days at AC Milan - just ask former Tottenham assistant Joe Jordan, who squared up to the Italian in a huge touchline bust-up.

The 40-year-old has since returned to the San Siro as manager, transferring those feisty personality traits to the touchline.

In another moment that sums up the former midfield maestro, footage has emerged of Gattuso slapping 17-year-old defender Gabriele Bellodi around the head after he proudly held a Barcelona shirt in the air.

The incident happened following Milan's 1-0 victory over the Catalan giants earlier this month.

Valente Silva scored in injury time winner in the International Champions Cup tournament and after the full-time whistle, Bellodi clearly wanted to remember the result by picking up a Barca shirt.

Gattuso, on the other hand, wasn't exactly delighted by the youngsters actions, using the classic Italian hand gesture to showcase his feelings. Classic.

He did, however, give the 17-year-old a chance to impress in the tournament - something that Bellodi will never forget.

Back in 2017, AC Milan decided to sack Vincenzo Montella and bring in former midfielder Gattuso, which has rekindled a nostalgic feel to Italian football, but many fans were originally unhappy with the appointment.

Gattuso wasn't exactly an experienced, proven manager at the highest level and during his time at Pisa, he gave us a potential glimpse of the future at Milan.

The 39-year-old eventually decided to leave Pisa after citing "serious, constant and unacceptable" problems at the club, but one moment in particular grabbed the headlines during his time at the club.

During an important tie against SPAL, who could have taken an 11-point lead at the top of Lega Pro if they picked up three points against Gattuso's side, the Italian slapped his assistant in the face after getting a little bit too passionate.

The funny thing is, Gattuso's Pisa were in a winning position when the slap occurred, with his team eventually going onto win the match.

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Topics: Football News, Football, AC Milan, Milan, Gennaro Gattuso, Italy

Jack Kenmare

Jack Kenmare is a writer at SPORTbible. He's interviewed some of the biggest names in sport, including Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Pele, Carles Puyol and Tim Henman. He dabbles in all things sport but football is his biggest passion. He was once hit in the head by a wayward strike from Nicky Butt and lived to tell the tale.

@jackkenmare_