Juventus Shamed by Reaction to Claudio Marchisio Injury

The whirlwind of activity around Claudio Marchisio this week is enough to make your head spin.

On Friday, Marchisio suffered a knee injury during warmups for a training session with the Italian national team.  After an initial MRI scan near the Azzurri's training home in Florence, it was announced that Marchisio had suffered a torn ACL and would be out for the season.

That was when the crazy started.  By Saturday, Juventus' medics had done their own tests and had determined that the ligament wasn't torn and that the midfielder could be in training within a few days.  Indeed, it was reported on Sunday that he could be back in training with Juve by Monday.

Confusion still reigns, but that's not what we're going to focus on in this space today.  What we're going to look at is the absolutely reprehensible behavior of Juventus fans and some of those connected to the club in between the initial injury and the revelation that it was less serious than it initially appeared.

After the initial injury reports, Juve fans exploded with rage at Italy coach—and former Juve boss—Antonio Conte.  John Elkann, president of FIAT group, criticized Conte for working the players too hard in training and went so far as to tell Gazzetta.it (h/t Football Italia) that Conte was no longer a coach but a "cherry-picker."

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What went totally beyond the pale was when FIGC president Carlo Tavecchio told the media that Conte had received death threats between the initial injury and Saturday's qualifier with Bulgaria.

First, to address the fan unrest.

Stop it.

Marchisio was called for international duty.  He went, as he had done 51 times before, to fulfill that call and receive the honor of wearing the Savoy blue.  He was doing an individual warmup before training and hurt his knee.  Whether it had indeed turned out to be a torn ACL or the simple tweak, injuries are a part of the game.  It doesn't matter if it happened at Coverciano or Vinovo.  You figure out who the next man up is and you move on.

Their reaction to this situation is an extension of the pain that fans of the Bianconeri have felt since Conte's abrupt resignation in July.  While circumstances of his departure could have been much better, he's still the man who built the club from back-to-back seventh-placed finishes to the juggernaut of Italian soccer it is today.  He does not deserve the treatment he has endured this year—especially not for doing his job as CT to the best of his ability.

As for Elkann, his comments hold no weight whatsoever.  As president of FIAT group, he's the business face of Juventus.  He has nothing to do with football or football decisions.  He has no concept of what being a coach is, whether it's a top-flight club, a national team or an amateur side.  His opinions mean absolutely nothing.

When it comes to the death threats, nothing can be said except it is reprehensible.  Anyone who considers soccer important enough to threaten a coach over a player's injury deserves pity, followed immediately by dismissal.

The general response to what happened to Marchisio seems exceedingly trivial considering how insignificant the injury itself ended up being.  It was inappropriate even if Marchisio was out for six months.  The extreme to which it has been taken, fueled by the vestigial emotions of the summer, has crossed the line into silly.

Antonio Conte deserves respect as CT and for what he's done for Juventus, both as a coach and a player.  As ESPNFC's Mina Rzouki said several days ago, this is not becoming of a club of this stature.  It's time to remember what it's like to behave like Juventus.