On the pages of Repubblica, Journalist Paolo Condò commented on the verbal clash between Ibrahimovic and Lukaku. This is what he had to say:
"What Ibra did to Lukaku in the Coppa Italia derby has a very precise name: it's called trash-talking, and it's a method - widely used in top competitions, and often also in football matches between players to make the opponent nervous by making them make mistakes, react negatively and or be expelled. The professionals of the sector d o it to try to reveal the weaknesses of the opponents: the history of the voodoo rites is a stupid thing pulled out by the owner of Everton to justify to the shareholders the fact that Lukaku had left at the time rather than extending his contract."
Paolo Condò recalls how the great NBA Legend Michael Jordan was a master of this sort of thing and that the late Kobe Bryant did the same as well.