Frank de Boer believes Juventus should give more credit to Inter Milan after they said their 2-1 defeat to his side at the weekend was their worst game in decades.
Juve coach Massimiliano Allegri focused on his team's mistakes rather than Inter's merits as the Bianconeri dropped their first points of the season on Sunday night.
Allegri labelled it "technically speaking the ugliest Juve performance in the last 30 years," but De Boer says he was complaining because his side lost to their rivals.
"It was ugly only for Juve," De Boer told Sky Sport Italia after his side followed up that win with a 2-0 triumph against Empoli on Wednesday. "It wasn't for us because we played a very attentive game, keeping our concentration in order to beat Juventus. It's his opinion and I respect it, but I certainly don't share it."
Juventus general manager Beppe Marotta suggested things might have been different at the San Siro had Gonzalo Higuain started.
The striker was left out by Allegri and Marotta says he was surprised when he took a look at the team sheet, although he did not wish to criticise his coach for the decision.
"By changing the team frequently, the coach is able to analyse different options," Marotta told Mediaset. "I did not expect to see Higuain on the bench, but Allegri decided that way and I respect his choice. We're going to see Gonzalo playing in far more games.
"We've lost against Inter but you do lose games now and again and you must not go looking for excuses. Overall, we've been getting good results. Juve have won so much in recent years that it's only normal that [a defeat] makes waves."
Wednesday night's Serie A results mean there are just two points separating Juve at the top of the table from Inter down in fifth, and De Boer is encouraged by his side's last two performances.
"I think on the whole, my players have now understood my philosophy and how I want them to play," he said. "This was a very big step for me. We controlled the game well and pressed when we could, and this is what I always want to see, not only in two games but for the whole season."