There was very little doubt what the result would be when Chievo welcomed Juventus to town.

The Bianconeri are having to work hard to win their seventh consecutive Scudetto, still trailing Napoli by a point, but they briefly moved top of the table with a 2-0 victory in Verona.

Sami Khedira and Gonzalo Higuain got the goals - on Gianluigi Buffon's birthday weekend, no less - to keep Max Allegri's men in the hunt for silverware.

Of course, they also have one eye on the Champions League, with a mouthwatering last-16 tie against Tottenham Hotspur to look forward to.

Spare a thought then, for Chievo, for whom things are a lot less rosy at the moment.

They are currently in the worst form of any side in Europe's big five leagues, failing to win a game since November. This was their fifth defeat in six games, so it is little wonder they have slipped down to 13th.

To make matters worse, when they look to arrest that slump against Atalanta next weekend, they will now have to do it without Fabrizio Cacciatore.

Samuel Bastien had already been sent off for the hosts before a bizarre incident involving the defender reduced Chievo to nine men.

Kwadwo Asamoah and Cacciatore were involved in a minor tussle that left the latter needing medical attention. Cacciatore was adamant that he didn't want to leave the pitch so he could defend a corner, but the referee insisted.

A controversial gesture 

What he did next is likely to land him in very hot water indeed, as Jose Mourinho will testify.

By making a 'handcuff gesture' - which in Italian football is a reference to match-fixing - he appeared to suggest the game had been fiddled. Perhaps he was talking about the 2006 scandal that rocked the division, particularly as his side were playing Juventus.

Mourinho did the same thing at Inter Milan back in 2010, resulting in a three-match ban and a €40,000 fine.

Cacciatore has apologised 

As for Cacciatore, the 31-year-old has since apologised on Instagram. Will that prevent the authorities from pursuing this further? We'll have to wait and see.

"I apologise publicly for the gesture I made. It was an enormous mistake," he wrote.

"I apologise to my teammates, the Coach, the club, our fans and all lovers of football," he wrote.

"It was certainly wrong, something that shouldn't be done, an example that a professional should not set.

"I'm sorry that I left my teammates in a difficult situation, as they were fighting hard from the first to the last minute...

"It was an impulsive letting out of steam and, as is only right, I paid a heavy price for it... SORRY."

Do you think he deserved to be sent off? Have your say in the comments.