Inter Milan coach Luciano Spalletti said the club had been humiliated by striker Mauro Icardi as he explained why he left Argentina out of the team for Sunday's Serie A match at home to Lazio.
Icardi was stripped of the captaincy in February after being embroiled in protracted negotiations over the renewal of his contract and the 26-year-old then said he could not play because of a knee problem.
Icardi, Inter's leading scorer in each of the last four seasons, returned to training this week after a meeting between his lawyer Paolo Nicoletti and the club and was expected to face Lazio but was surprisingly left out by Spalletti.
"To have to negotiate with a player to get him to play and wear the Inter shirt is humiliating, for the fans and his teammates," Spalletti said after third-placed Inter's 1-0 defeat. "Do I have to email his lawyers before I can select him?"
Spalletti said that "the events have happened in front of everyone and are easy to interpret.
"You must have respect and the right behavior in the dressing room. The coach must be credible and recognized as someone who will do the right thing."