Milan Denied a Penalty; Marelli Can’t Explain It. La Gazzetta Sides with the Referee

A controversial incident in the Torino-Milan match: in the 14th minute of the second half, with the score tied at 0-0, a cross from Milan attacking midfielder Cissé was blocked by Nikola Vlasic’s arm inside the box. The Rossoneri players immediately protested vehemently, but referee Luca Zufferli decided not to call anything, and VAR official Silvio Mazzoleni did not intervene.

Controversy immediately erupted on social media. DAZN’s video analyst Luca Marelli clearly commented on the incident: “It’s inexplicable why VAR wasn’t consulted. We might even think there were new guidelines, but this is a penalty kick that should have been awarded yesterday, today, and even tomorrow. There are elements that warrant an On-Field Review (OFR), and it’s inexplicable that Zufferli wasn’t called for one: not only does his arm extend toward the ball—which in itself would be a foul—but he also clearly increases his body’s volume. That’s why all the elements are there to warrant an OFR.”

“Why do I say OFR? Because I can’t blame Zufferli on the field for this mistake—from his position, it was truly difficult to see the movement of the arm, so much so that he was at an angle to Vlasic. It was hard to see. What I can’t understand, however, is why Mazzoleni didn’t call the referee for an On-Field Review.”

Mediaset’s video analyst Graziano Cesari took the same stance (“The midfielder’s arm is too far out”), but *La Gazzetta dello Sport* holds the opposite view: “Vlasic’s contact with the ball in the box: his arm pulls back and certainly isn’t moving toward the ball. It’s never a penalty.” Milan defeated Torino 2-1 with goals from Cissé and Rabiot.