Juventus and their star Mehdi Benatia left furious after defender was racially abused in live TV interview

ITALIAN football has been rocked with a second racist storm inside a week after Juventus star Mehdi Benatia was insulted live on television.

The Moroccan international was speaking to Italian state TV company Rai after the 1-1 draw with neighbours Torino on Saturday night when the shocking moment occurred.

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As he was speaking to studio presenters, Benatia heard a voice over his radio earpiece say: “What are you saying, s****y Moroccan?”

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The 30-year-old then stopped mid-sentence and replied: “Who said that? What stupid person is speaking?”

The presenters also heard the remark, but tried to brush it off, telling Benatia: “It seems there are some technical problems. No one here has been heard making any insults.”

A visibly irate Benatia then wiped his brow as the hosts thanked him for his time before bringing the interview to an abrupt end.

Juventus are believed to be equally as furious at the TV company as Benatia.

It is thought the remark came from a careless studio technician who had left a microphone on, but it put racism firmly back in the spotlight a week after the controversy surrounding Ghanaian Sulley Muntari.

The Pescara midfielder said last week he felt “treated like a criminal” after being sanctioned for walking off the pitch during a 1-0 loss at Cagliari where he fell victim to racial abuse.

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He was booked by the referee for complaining about the abuse and then shown a red card for walking off the pitch in the final minutes.

After he personally appealed to league bosses, his ban was rescinded on Saturday when he said: “I was being treated like a criminal. How could I be punished when I was the victim of racism?”