Fabio Maresca is the favourite to referee Sunday evening’s Serie A match between Inter Milan and Juventus.
This according to today’s print edition of Rome-based newspaper Corriere dello Sport, via FCInterNews.
The question of who will be the referee on February 4 at the San Siro is hardly a trivial one.
First of all, the match will have huge potential ramifications for the outcome of the Serie A title race.
Inter and Juventus look to be the two main contenders for the Scudetto.
The Bianconeri are currently one point ahead at the top of the table. But the Nerazzurri have a game in hand which could prove to be all-important.
In any event, the match between the two the weekend after this one has all the potential to shift the balance in the title race.
Maresca The Favourite To Referee Inter Vs Juventus Clash
Then, there is the fact that controversy is seemingly never far from Derby d’Italia matches between Inter and Juventus.
That has been the case over the years, and decades, in the fixture.
This is perhaps inevitable considering that it pits two of Italian football’s dominant forces against one another.
Moreover, refereeing has been at the centre of a fair bit of controversy in Serie A in recent weeks.
Recently, an unnamed Serie A referee spoke out about what he saw as poor standards and a lack of accountability behind a number of incorrect decisions.
This referee identified decisions that favoured both of Inter and Juventus this season.
So naturally, the pressure on any official will be significant.
According to the Corriere, it is Maresca who is likely to be in charge of Sunday’s match.
Marco Guida would be another candidate. But given that Guida refereed the last meeting between the two, he won’t likely be assigned to another Derby d’Italia.
Meanwhile, given Daniele Orsato’s history of controversy during matches between Inter and Juventus – particularly a failure to send Bianconeri midfielder Miralem Pjanic off in a match in 2018 – he would be out of the running.
