Palermo striker Fabrizio Miccoli has lifted the lid on his tears after scoring against hometown club Lecce on the weekend.

Miccoli curled in a free kick to equalise on the stroke of half-time on Sunday and was visibly upset, then did not come back out for the second half.

"I promised I wouldn't talk about this for a while, but so much has been said that I now have to," explained Lecce native Miccoli in a Press conference.

"It's my fault this situation happens every time, as I feel so close to my home land and it's something personal I wish I could keep to myself.

"It is not true that I asked to be substituted. I was upset, sat away from the squad in the locker room and the Coach saw that, so decided to replace me for my own good and that of the team. It must've worked, as Palermo scored three goals in 10 minutes."