Rome: Romelu Lukaku and Chris Smalling on Thursday slammed a renowned Italian sports daily as "dumb" and "insensitive" after it used "Black Friday" in a front page headline about them meeting for the first time in Serie A. Former Manchester United teammates Smalling and Lukaku face off at the San Siro on Friday as Inter Milan look to maintain top spot in Serie A, prompting the Rome-based Corriere dello Sport to publish a headline that has attracted widespread condemnation.

"Instead of focusing on a battle between two teams.. Corriere dello Sport comes with the dumbest of headlines I have ever seen in my career," Lukaku said in a message on Twitter. "You guys keep fuelling the negativity and the racism issue." Lukaku and Smalling have both taken Serie A by storm since arriving in the summer, with the Belgian striker bagging 10 goals in 14 appearances for title hopefuls Inter and England international Smalling becoming an instant fan favourite in the Italian capital.