AC Milan secured three hard-fought points against Hellas Verona yesterday, winning by the odd goal. However, it could have been more for the Rossoneri as the referee missed a possible penalty.
Lega Serie A made a last-minute change to Milan’s game, replacing Marchetti with Maresca as the referee of the clash. The latter had an okay game, as highlighted by Gazzetta Dello Sport (see below), but missed a possible penalty.
It was in the second half that Ruben Loftus-Cheek entered the penalty box, before being taken down by Isak Hien. It may have looked like a shoulder-to-shoulder challenge at first, but replays show the Swede was almost reckless, hitting the Englishman with great force and slightly from the side.
As the newspaper states, that could have been a penalty but it wasn’t enough for a VAR check either. Apart from that, Maresca did a decent job in what was a very scrappy and physical game, which is never easy to officiate.