🧐 Derby defeat to Milan: Inter fume over penalty incident | OneFootball

AC Milan won the second derby of the season, reduced the gap to their rivals to seven points, and thus made the race for the Italian championship exciting again. The evening was one to remember for the "Rossoneri".

Massimiliano Allegri once again outmaneuvered Cristian Chivu tactically and – if any further proof was needed – showed that he remains an expert in city derbies.

On the other hand, it was a very poor derby for the "Nerazzurri". Top matches seem to have become a real problem by now. The team, which steamrolls supposedly smaller sides, seems to fall apart as soon as the level rises. The absences – which were particularly severe yesterday – can be used as an excuse, but what was most unconvincing about the league leaders was their attitude.

Despite a very weak derby from Inter Milan, there were still chances – and thus also discussions. Two incidents sparked debate: first, a goal when play had already been stopped, and then a handball by Samuele Ricci in the Rossoneri’s penalty area. Both situations occurred deep into stoppage time.

Penalty Not Given Divides Opinions

The decisive scene was certainly the second, which Federico Dimarco also spoke about after the match. A cross into the middle, a chest layoff from Denzel Dumfries, then Ricci’s hand, who tries to pull his arm away but still touches the ball.

For 'La Gazzetta dello Sport', there was nothing to penalize, with the newspaper commenting only that the scene "was judged as not punishable in the dynamics." The tone was much sharper at 'Sky Sport Italia'.

For expert Giuseppe Bergomi, there are many doubts, especially regarding the VAR standard: "I’ve seen many penalties given in this way, even less clear ones. In this case, VAR has to intervene – I don’t know why it didn’t."

Expert Stefano De Grandis sees it similarly: "He certainly doesn’t do it intentionally, but I have trouble distinguishing this from all the others that have been given. The arm is far out and goes towards the ball; then he tries to pull it back, but still hits the ball."

Milan legend Alessandro Costacurta also referred to comparisons with scenes from recent history: "I believe that the proximity to the body influenced VAR’s decision not to call Doveri to the screen. For me, that’s actually never a penalty – but you have to say that such penalties have almost always been given so far."

And the VAR? According to the entire panel of experts at Sky Sport Italia, it should have sent Doveri for a review.

Clarity regarding the rules was finally provided by Luca Marelli, who commented via message in the 'DAZN' studio: "According to FIFA rules, which are applied in Serie A, the handball is not punishable because the movement is to pull the arm back and not to create an obstacle."

Comparison with Bisseck Incident

The controversy – unsurprisingly – also flared up on social media. Many Inter fans believe that the scene is very similar to the one that led to a decisive penalty in the title race in May last year during the Inter Milan vs Lazio match, later known as the "Yann Bisseck handball". 

Back then, even having his hands behind his back wasn’t enough for the Inter defender to avoid a penalty. A similar situation – as Dimarco also emphasized: "The Ricci handball? Every week we talk about referee decisions, the arm is out. I just say that the referee should be sent to VAR so he can decide. These are important games – it’s similar to Bisseck in Inter-Lazio. Last year Lazio equalized through such a penalty."

Back then, Daniele Chiffi’s whistle steered the title race towards SSC Napoli and triggered the nightmare season finale for Simone Inzaghi’s team.

Whether this time the referee’s decision will also have a major impact on the title race remains to be seen. 

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.

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