Hardly a week goes by without cries of injustice and corruption in Serie A, and once again the world of officiating did itself no favors in a league wracked with suspicion and finger-pointing after a weekend full of questionable decisions and frankly head scratching calls.
Juventus traveled to Sicily to meet a dangerous Catania side, who can consider themselves extremely unfortunate after seeing Gonzalo Bergessio’s perfectly good goal was disallowed for offside before Juventus scored their own – which in fact was offside..twice. Arturo Vidal’s winner will inevitably be scrutinized under a microscope and debated over cappuccino’s all across the peninsula – as questionable Juventus results tend to be.
Whether you are of the belief that this is merely poor refereeing or evidence of a conspiracy against the morality of Juventus’s claim to be unbeaten, none of this will help Serie A or Juventus’s efforts to clean their image and return as unquestionable giants of the European game – a label that has begun to slip after a downturn in Italian performances in Europe.
The outrage didn’t stay in Sicily – the battle between top three contenders Fiorentina and Lazio ended heatedly after the Biancocelesti saw a goal disallowed that would have leveled the tie, but it was called offside. Fiorentina promptly doubled their lead and won the game, not before Lazio lost their temper and ended the tie with nine men after Christian Ledesma and Hernanes saw red, the latter for a horrific scissor tackle on Juan Cuadrado.
Calls of controversy and referee “slavery” to the big clubs are rife in Italy – but there is evidence of this sort of pressure on officials all across Europe. From questionable penalty decisions involving Real Madrid and Barcelona in Spain, to the long held belief in England that Sir Alex Ferguson has more influence in the league and it’s governing body than perhaps he should – big teams putting sub-conscious pressure on referees, regardless of intention, is not an Italian-only trend. The issue remains however, that when it happens in Italy it seems to be much worse than it really is. If the peninsula is to finally break free of the shackles of suspicion and doubt, then the refereeing must improve. Officials are never perfect and we should never expect them to be, but mistakes this often and this noticeable are only going to be at the detriment of the league.
Elsewhere, Milan recorded their third win of the league season after Stephan El Shaarawy once again rescued Massimiliano Allegri’s side after another stuttering performance. The former Cagliari tactician was typically bullish in the post match interview, “results, not performances will be Milan’s cure” was the new party line – but that will not reassure Milanisti.
68% possession but only two shots on target is a telling stat from a team that switched to a 3-4-3 to improve their offensive game, but the Rossoneri were ponderous and laborious in possession, clearly still missing a focal point in attack, and dynamism in midfield. Pato’s return is a welcome sight after another long lay off, but the Brazilian displayed his ability to dazzle and infuriate in equal measure – turning his markers with ease before losing possession and doing little to no work off the ball. However, the Selecao forward still showed more promise than Giampaolo Pazzini, who continues to cut a isolated figure in a Milan shirt.
Across the city divide to Inter where things are looking much more promising, Stramaccioni’s black and blue revolution striding to another win after disposing of Bologna. It’s hard to pinpoint which positive is most pleasing for Interisti – Andrea Ranocchia’s return to form, Rodrigo Palacio and Antonio Cassano’s ease in which they’ve adapted to their new side, Diego Milito still leading the line with precision and control – but the sight of Esteban Cambiasso dominating the midfield and recording another Andrea Pirlo-esque assist will warm the hearts of those with Nerazzurri persuasions. Many called the Argentinian’s top flight career over after poor performances under Gasperini and Ranieri last season, but the 32 year old has been the driving force of Inter’s form so far this campaign. Alongside fellow countrymen and ageless wonder Javier Zanetti and the aforementioned Diego Milito, Inter’s senatores are proving time and time again that age doesn’t matter, performances do. Next weekend’s clash against Juventus is set to be a cracker.
Roma were once again beaten in spectacular style after taking a lead, with Coach Zdenek Zeman seemingly intent on recapturing AC Milan’s famous collapse in Istanbul every single week. The Giallorossi looked scintillating whilst recording a 2-0 advantage over Udinese before collapsing in frighteningly predictable style, Toto Di Natale’s beautiful cucchiaio from the spot crowning a famous win for the Friuli side. The capital club dropped down to a still respectable sixth place in the standings, but the continual rollercoaster taking place will inevitably raise questions over the stability of Zeman’s management style from the powers that be at Roma – if they haven’t already.
Napoli maintain second place after a win at Chievo thanks to a goal from Marek Hamsik, but will be looking nervously over their shoulder as Inter now sit just a point below the Partonopei. Consistency will be the order of proceedings from a side that has only recorded one loss in the last five games, and with matches against Atalanta, Torino and struggling Genoa in the next couple of weeks Walter Mazzarri’s side should expect nine points out nine to keep tabs on Juve. Given the Bianconeri’s continued form, it will be a necessity to do so.
Further down the table, Parma recorded a 3-1 win over Torino to hold onto seventh place. Roberto Donadoni’s transformation of the Gialloblu is impressing many, not least the scoring form of former Juventus reject Amauri, who netted his third of the season in today’s victory. Parma fans will hope the Brazilian can keep leading the line as he has been, and the Romagnan side can continue to be Italy’s surprise package.
Other results:
I’d just point out that Parma always looked the more likely against Torino, but didn’t score until Sansone was dismissed for something I’m not entirely convinced was the simulation it was pegged to be – further to the ‘referees weren’t great’ theme of the weekend.
That said, Torino crumbled epically after the first goal in a disheartening and (recently) unlikely way.