Napoli again feels wronged by the arbitration after the return in the quarterfinals of the Champions League against AC Milan (1-1). According to coach Luciano Spalletti, his team should have received a penalty in the first half for a foul on Hirving Lozano.
Spalletti is again disappointed with arbitration: “Lozano should have received a penalty”
Napoli could not rely on André-Frank Zambo Anguissa and Min-Jae Kim on Tuesday evening because of the cards they received last Wednesday in the lost away game against Milan. Spalletti complained about this and six days later was again not happy with the decision of referee Szymon Marciniak, who did not see a penalty in a tackle by Rafael Leão on Lozano.
Everyone, except those wearing a Milan shirt, agreed that the referee made mistakes in the first leg. It was an obvious penalty today in the tackle on Lozano, because you can see in the replay that the ankle is hit and he doesn’t touch the ball. A penalty couldn’t be clearer. Otherwise, the ankle wouldn’t rotate that way. You can’t miss that.”
“But then people say we are complaining again,” Spalletti continued his account in conversation with Sport Mediaset. “The penalty we gave away (and missed by Olivier Giroud) was naive, but this was also a clear penalty,” said Napoli’s coach, who acknowledged that his team could have defended better. “The penalty was unnecessary and the goal we conceded was also preventable.”
Spalletti eventually gave credit to Milan for taking their chance
Spalletti was referring to Rafael Leão’s impressive solo, who crossed the field from his own half and then gave up on Giroud. “We had possession of the ball and allowed them to turn the situation around completely. They scored on their one and only attack in our sixteen, we were not capable of the same,” lamented the trainer, who congratulated the efficient Milan on the semi-final place.
“They are a mature team that knows when to accelerate and when to defend,” Spalletti explained what made the difference in the diptych with Milan. “Our Champions League campaign was of a very high level. We pay the price for a few naive moments. Before the international break we were in fantastic shape, after that some players were not fit, especially Osimhen.”
