Stramaccioni plays it cool over Cassano strop

Andrea Stramaccioni has played down Antonio Cassano’s show of dissent as he came off the field during the 2-0 win over Pescara on Saturday.

The former AC Milan man was substituted in the 68th minute to give January signing Tommaso Rocchi his debut, and Cassano appeared to disagree with the decision as he trudged off the pitch.

But Stramaccioni claimed it was only a show of passion from the striker, and said there were no underlying tensions between the pair.

“He had every right to be disappointed as he could not take his chances. Perhaps he wanted to stay on the field for longer,” he said.

“That just shows how much this club means to him. Still, I have to keep the Coppa Italia on Tuesday in mind, as well as choose the right opportunity to hand Rocchi his debut.”

Inter comfortably dispatched relegation-threatened Pescara, with goals from Rodrigo Palacio and Fredy Guarin, prompting Stramaccioni to praise the quality of the display.

“We have improved our performance level compared to recent showings,” he said.

“We are finding our balance, and this will be important in repeating our results from earlier this season.”