A parachuter who halted a Serie A clash between Inter Milan and Sassuolo has claimed that an emergency landing was the reason behind the disruption.

The man landed in the middle of the pitch right before half time as Romelu Lukaku was set to take a crucial penalty. 

Security staff hauled the man and his parachute off the pitch while players looked on in confusion. 

According to news agency Ansa, the man claimed: "I had problems and had an emergency landing. I didn't realise the tiny green square was a stadium."

The Belgian shrugged off the distraction to tuck away the penalty as Inter went on to win the game 4-3.

The man has since been banned from fixtures with police stating: "The action carried out could cause serious risk to the safety of the numerous public present and of the players."

Television cameras attempted to cut away from the scene as to not give publicity to the disruption and encourage similar displays.