“I read some statements from Los Angeles Marottain my opinion out of place. The rigor, according to the vast majority of observers, was not there. But above all, the words of Conte they were clear and they are exactly what I think and have always said.” The president of Napoli Aurelio De Laurentiis thus intervened, with an official statement from the club, to respond to the president of Inter Giuseppe Marotta and respond to the controversy surrounding the refereeing episodes of Inter-Napoli. “VAR is a great resource for avoiding refereeing errors. It makes no sense to say that sometimes he can intervene and sometimes he can’t.”
“If there is a refereeing error – De Laurentiis clarified – the VAR staff must call the race director. Otherwise, the growth of calcium and is blocked suspicions will be fueled. Furthermore, the referees are already in direct contact with the VAR. Why shouldn’t they receive information from those who can see what is happening on the pitch with the help of technology? Conte has explained sacrosanct conceptsthe same ones that I have supported for years! It is necessary to ensure that suspicions and doubts are not fueled, and respect, as underlined by Rocchi, must be mutual to avoid, as he said, the championship being set on fire.”
Conte’s outburst
The Napoli president’s statements follow the coach’s words Antonio Contewho after Inter-Napoli had spoken in this way in reference to the penalty awarded by referee Mariani (and missed by Calhanoglu) for one clash between Anguissa and Dumfries in the 72nd minute, without VAR intervention to call the race director toon field review. “What do you mean that the VAR couldn’t intervene? It’s something that really pisses me off, the VAR should correct errors or evaluate situations that have escaped the referee’s notice. Used like this it only creates second thoughts on everyone’s part” were Conte’s words after the match Dazn. “If there is an error, as in the case of the penalty awarded, the VAR must intervene, not confirm the referee’s decision. And it must apply to everyone, not just when it happens against us.”
Marotta’s reply
The Inter president responded to Conte’s outburst Beppe Marottawhich yesterday received the Premio Nils Liedholm in Cuccaro Monferrato, in the province of Alessandria: “I believe that with technology the situation has improved, there are fewer errors. Conte is an intelligent person and when he speaks he does it for a reasonbut in this case the referee was very close to the action, certainly there was physical contact and the foot was moved, therefore in my opinion it was rigour. If we then have to discuss a better use of VAR in terms of protocol, this is part of a constructive debate that must be held within the football system, but the centrality of the referee on the pitch must be a priority. I don’t know if Conte wanted to shift the focus, but in the end the episode was not decisive, unfortunately. And I repeat, for me it was a penalty.”