Former Serie A referee Luca Marelli insists that Atalanta didn’t deserve a penalty kick when Juventus defender Federico Gatti handled the ball inside the box.
The incident occurred during the closing stages of Saturday’s big clash at the New Balance Arena in Bergamo, which pitted two Champions League hopefuls against one another.
While the Orobici were the more dangerous side in the first period, they failed to capitalise on their chances. On the contrary, Jeremie Boga scored a scrappy opener against his former employers after the break, and it was enough for the Old Lady to escape with all three points.
Atalanta felt they were denied a penalty against Juventus
Juventus were largely able to shut down Atalanta’s attacks during the second period thanks to a low defensive block.
Nevertheless, the Bianconeri’s solid work could have been undone in the 86th minute, when the ball struck Gatti’s arm from close range.
While the Italian defender had blocked the cross with an illegal part of his anatomy, Fabio Maresca didn’t blow his whistle, while the VAR confirmed the match official’s decision following a brief check, much to the dismay of the Atalanta players, their head coach, Raffaele Palladino, and the home crowd in Bergamo.
Luca Marelli reveals why Gatti’s handball didn’t constitute a spot-kick
After the contest, a few pundits and observers tried to stir the pot with conspiracy theories, but Marelli, who is widely considered among the most trusted figures in refereeing analysis, insisted that Maresca and VAR were on point.
As the retired referee explained, Gatti never made a deliberate attempt to block the ball with his arm, or try to enlarge his frame. On the contrary, the Juventus defender tried his best to move his arm out of the way
“At the moment of the cross, Gatti touches the ball with his right arm,” said Marelli in his post-match appearance on DAZN (via JuventusNews24).
“In reality, the VAR check lasts very little, it’s difficult to say that Maresca saw something, at most he may have sensed it, but on VAR they quickly frame the episode.
“The arm remains still and then in the second moment it retracts toward the body, resulting very close to the body itself, there is never a movement to make it wider, hence why the decision was quick and above all correct.”
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