The dying minutes of Milan-Lazio ended up being rather controversial, as VAR instructed the referee to assess a potential penalty for the away side, only for a foul to be awarded instead.
It was a rather dull game for most of the evening, it has to be said, with both sides struggling to create chances. Furthermore, there was a plethora of technical errors, which only fueled the frustration among the fans. Having said that, a Rafael Leao goal was all that Milan needed.
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The No.10 found the back of the net in the 52nd minute after a nice attack by the Rossoneri, and they did well afterwards to defend their lead. However, it could have ended in disaster, as VAR instructed the referee to take a look at a potential handball on Strahinja Pavlovic.
Right call, wrong execution
After a lengthy VAR check, which was also delayed by Massimiliano Allegri’s sending off, the referee got back on the pitch to make the announcement. While he stated that Pavlovic’s handball was punishable, he also said that there was a foul on him just before, awarding a free-kick.
It’s a situation that upset Lazio, resulting in them boycotting the media after the game, and the verdict was certainly delivered in a dramatic fashion, with the Biancocelesti initially celebrating. So, did the referee make the right call?
The refereeing experts Luca Marelli of DAZN and Denis of Errori Arbitrali both agree that it shouldn’t have been a penalty for the handball. Furthermore, it shouldn’t have been a free-kick for Milan either, as Adam Marusic didn’t commit a foul. Right outcome, as such, but the wrong execution.
“Collu made the right decision with the wrong approach. Pavlovic and Marusic held each other back, so for me it wasn’t a foul. Just as it wasn’t a handball by Pavlovic, who had his back turned and was close to Romagnoli.
“Furthermore, his arm was in a natural position and wasn’t moving towards the ball. If Romagnoli had scored, VAR wouldn’t have intervened to disallow the goal for Marusic’s alleged foul on Pavlovic,” Marellu stated via Calciomercato.com.
“My opinion? It wasn’t an attacking foul, but it wasn’t a punishable handball either: close-range shot, player almost with his back turned, marking, without making a movement towards the ball.
“The ‘where would the ball have gone without that touch’ aspect only comes into play when judging any disciplinary sanctions (i.e. potential cards). I would have simply let it go and resumed with the corner kick in favour of Lazio,” Denis wrote.
“close-range shot, player almost with his back turned, marking, without making a movement towards the ball”-
Spot on. Would had been a scandal if the penalty was given. Luckily, two wrongs made one right last night.
Not to mention the fact Romagnoli should have received two yellows and not even been on the pitch… It’s getting harder each week not to believe there’s some sort of anti-Milan bias in Serie A…
Dejo, majstore, pa ti si Bog!
not two yellows. straight red for the foul on Salad.
In slow motion these incidents look sus. I prefer if they replayed them in real time so as to adjudge the proper reaction time.
Also, it was an attacking foul IF we are considering the handball in question because he would have had more time to get to Romagnoli’s shot if he hadn’t been held back (the pull on his shirt came from quite some time before the shot and Pav had to work around it)
Im stunned / impressed that the Ref didn’t feel obligated to give the penalty as soon as he was summoned by VAR.
Typically its a given that any suspected penalty is given once VAR raises the question.
The match yesterday was a bit dull but I think we just about deserved the 3 points. Forza Milan 😀
yes, i was surprised too. it was thanks to Allegris action – he took the red for the team – buying some time and bringing the stadium against the refs and thats what made them (i’m pretty sure ref got the order to not give the penalty after all) decide that way
VAR shouldn’t interfere in situations like this. 0 reasons to check this.
I think VAR usage in serie a needs some review. I don’t see why an incident should take more than 30 secs to review and give a right call. The unlimited time given to the ref makes them linger too much and act as though they are in a learning program when they should be professionals in what they do.