In a heated Serie A match between Lazio and Milan at the Stadio Olimpico, two major controversial incidents left the home team infuriated. The crowd was fired up, directing most of its ire towards the officials, particularly referee Marco Di Bello.
The first incident occurred in the first half when Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan collided heavily with Lazio’s Taty Castellanos while attempting to clear a back-pass from Alessandro Florenzi. Lazio vehemently appealed for a penalty, arguing that Maignan’s challenge on Castellanos warranted a spot-kick. However, both the referee and VAR deemed it as a natural continuation of Maignan’s motion after he had cleared the ball. They argued that at the moment of contact, Castellanos could not have benefited as Matteo Gabbia already had possession. DAZN’s refereeing pundit Luca Marelli supported this interpretation, stating that there was no grounds for further action.
Penalty Appeals and Red Card Spark Outrage
The second controversial incident that stoked anger among Lazio supporters involved Luca Pellegrini receiving his second yellow card for a foul on Milan’s Christian Pulisic. Once again, Castellanos was involved as he suffered a knock to the face in a collision with Ismael Bennacer. Pellegrini, assuming play would be halted due to the injury, attempted to shepherd the ball out at the touchline. However, when the referee did not blow the whistle and Pulisic seized the opportunity to steal the ball, Pellegrini reacted by pulling him back by the shoulders and jersey, resulting in his second booking and subsequent sending off.
Despite the visible injury sustained by Castellanos, the referee, being behind the collision, was not in a position to see it. DAZN pundit Marelli pointed out that the incident occurred beyond the referee’s field of vision, suggesting that the fourth official should have intervened to provide assistance in such situations. The decision left Lazio aggrieved, as they believed the circumstances surrounding Pellegrini’s second yellow card were unjust.
