Maurizio Mariani will officiate the Derby della Madonnina between AC Milan and Inter this evening. Given that tensions are running high, especially for the Rossoneri, it will likely be a tough game for the referee to keep control of.
The physiological warfare has already begun with Hakan Calhanoglu taunting his former club on social media. His relationship with the Milan players isn’t exactly the best, while Theo Hernandez and Denzel Dumfries could have another bust-up tonight as well.
In any case, as highlighted by MilanNews, this will be Mariani’s fourth derby as the head referee after Milan’s 2-1 win in the 2020 league game and the 2022 Coppa Italia semi-final tie (0-0 in the first leg than 3-0 to inter in the second leg).
Mariani has officiated 22 Milan games and the record is the following for those: 12 wins, 4 draws and 6 defeats, but with several controversies. As for Inter, he has officiated 15 games: 8 wins, 4 draws and 3 defeats.
There have been a few controversial episodes with Milan too, such as the non-existent yellow card to Theo Hernandez after the goal against Hellas Verona last season. In general, however, Mariani has done well when officiating the Rossoneri.
Mariani is the best italian ref i think