Sasuolo u top formi, Matić i dalje okajava grehe

AC Milan have made a call to the Italian Refereeing Association to let them know that they are furious with the amount of errors against them. La Gazzetta dello Sport report that the call was made one day after Milan-Como, amid anger over Strahinja Pavlovic’s injury. The defender received studs on his shin from Van der Brempt, from which he was lucky not to fracture his leg, and Mariani’s did not even issue a yellow card to the defender. It was immediately clear from the pitch that the tackle was particularly harsh and, above all, dangerous. After reviewing the incident again, nobody at Casa Milan and Milanello could explain why there wasn’t a check from VAR and a red card. This isn’t the first incident in 2025-26 that has left Milan’s management perplexed, and for this reason, a call was sent to the AIA (Italian Referees’ Association) yesterday. It was not a formal protest, but a polite way to make it clear that they don’t like what’s happening in terms of refereeing decisions. The Pavlovic case The results of the Serbian defender’s tests yesterday are clear: “Large soft tissue hematoma and edematous-hemorrhagic imbibition of the fibula bone without cortical disruption.” There was concern at San Siro on Wednesday evening, so much so that the player left the stadium with sliders on, with his ankle in a brace, and used the elevator to reach the garage (he obviously didn’t drive). The possibility of a fibula fracture – meaning he would be out of action until 2026-27 – wasn’t far-fetched, given the impact of the studs in a very dangerous spot. Such a challenge must be punished with a card, probably a red in the eyes of the club. Milan’s bitterness over this is palpable, especially since playing with a man advantage for more than half of the match would have (perhaps) changed the course of the game and the title race. Pavlovic, however, was forced to come off at half-time, so Milan were penalised again. Fabregas gets away with it Allegri was then sent off for going to defend Alexis Saelemaekers after the incident with Fabregas. Along with Max, Como director Davide Cattaneo and a member of the coaching staff, Diego Perez Castillo, were also sent off. Fabregas admitted his mistake in front of reporters, and Milan believe that he deserved the red card for holding Saelemaekers by his shirt. Instead, Allegri paid the price, receiving his third red card of the season after those against Bologna (at home) and Lazio. Trusty assistant Marco Landucci will be on the bench on Sunday, and Max will watch Milan-Parma from the stands. Including the two Coppa Italia games against Bari and Lecce, missed due to a suspension dating back to his time at Juventus, he has already experienced five as a spectator. The two have a strong connection because they’ve worked together for twenty years and see football alike, but the absence of their coach against the Gialloblù will still be a handicap for Maignan and his team-mates. Having Adrien Rabiot back is a boost, but he will return just one yellow away from another suspension after what happened in Pisa. A single card (the first), given the severity of the contact with Leris, was already considered excessive by the Rossoneri. To get a second for protesting is something that the club do not accept. Also because, when it comes to protests (like Luka Modric in Rome, also booked after confronting a player who shoved him from behind), not all players at the big clubs are treated equally. A necessary call On Wednesday, Milan avoided making controversial references to Mariani’s management and the VAR system in front of cameras and notebooks. During this turbulent period for Rocchi (the referee designator) and his team, the management’s attitude has been one of responsibility and balance. Last week, Gerry Cardinale spoke with Serie A officials about the new stadium, foreign TV rights and the expansion of Italian football. At the same time, however, not all of the referees’ decisions have pleased the Rossoneri, and this has been politely pointed out to AIA in recent hours. There is Pulisic’s unfairly disallowed goal against Sassuolo (it would have made it 3-1, but the match ended 2-2). No one has yet found an explanation for either the penalty not awarded to Nkunku in the first leg won against Bologna or for Moreo’s tackle on Gabbia which helped Pisa’s Nzola make it 2-1 at San Siro. The penalty figures are also stark: Milan are the team who have had the most penalties against them (7) after Napoli (8). This is enough to warrant a call to the AIA and to hope that certain cases will not happen again. At Milanello, they want a season finale without negative controversy.