Former Serie A referee Luca Marelli believes that Inter should have been awarded a penalty for the tug on striker Edin Dzeko’s shirt by a Lecce defender.
Speaking to Italian broadcaster DAZN after the match, the former official argued that there was more than enough of a pull on the Bosnian’s shirt to warrant a spot kick being given, whilst he also feels that the challenge on Lautaro Martinez was nothing more than a yellow card.
Inter had a couple of grievances with the officiating from young referee Alessandro Prontera, namely the heavy challenge on Martinez by Federico Baschirotto in the first half, and the penalty not given for what looked to have been a shirt-pull on Dzeko by Lecce defender Alexis Blin.
On the latter, Marelli feels that Inter were hard done by, and when asked whether he felt it was worthy of a penalty replied “Yes, I would say sp. Blin’s holding was clear and prolonged.”
“The VAR doesn’t intervene in these cases because it’s something to be evaluated on the pitch, but the penalty could have been given and it’s an episode to keep in mind for the future.”
However, regarding the tackle by Baschirotto on Martinez that Inter players felt was worthy of a sending off, Marelli argued that “It’s not a red card challenge, it’s a strong challenge but his legs are on the ground. It’s a classic yellow card challenge.”
