The match between Bologna and Monza, which ended with the rossoblù winning 2-1, was at the center of a heated debate on refereeing. LucaMarelli, DAZN analyst, expressed his criticism of the referee's decisions, highlighting three controversially awarded penalties and other errors that influenced the course of the match.
The first controversy occurred in the third minute of the first half, when the Monza coach contested the awarding of a penalty to Theate for an alleged intervention on Mota. According to Marelli, the referee was late in making the decision and, after starting to move towards the center of the pitch, he was signaled by the assistant, who corrected the choice. The analyst stressed that the initial assessment was wrong, but that the correction was correct.
In the 51st minute, referee Zanotti made a serious mistake. A free kick should have been awarded and Goglichidze booked, but the incident was handled incorrectly: the sending off was not given because the ball ended up on the sideline. VAR was unable to issue a yellow card, but should have detected the absence of the corner kick and intervened to restart the goal kick. Marelli noted that, with a little more malice, the referee could have overturned the decision.
The last two penalties awarded sparked further controversy. The referee lost Lucchesi's hold on Theate, despite the clear evidence of the gesture. VAR intervened correctly, awarding the penalty and warning for unsportsmanlike conduct. In the 78th minute, a third penalty was awarded to Zortea, who was very close to the ball. The analyst reiterated that the touch of the arm was in extension and did not touch the ball, making the decision questionable.
Marelli concluded his speech by stating that the ratings of the episodes must be correct. According to the analyst, refereeing had a significant impact on the final result and raised questions about the management of decisions on the pitch. The match, although won by Bologna, remains an example of how refereeing errors can influence the outcome of a match.