Italy coach Luciano Spalletti reacted irritably to a journalist's question following the holders' exit from the European Championship against Switzerland.
The Swiss dominated the Azzurri to win 2-0 on Saturday in Berlin and advance to the quarter-finals.
A Swiss reporter asked Spalletti whether Italy had been a Fiat Panda and Switzerland a Ferrari.
"You have to accept everything, even insinuations of bad taste like yours," the 65-year-old said. "It's clear that you are a person of great irony."
The coach and his press officer then explicitly asked the journalist several times for his name and employer.
"You were better than us and deserved to win," added Spalletti. "We will try to do better next time."
