1 month ago
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Cagliari manager Fabio Pisacane was asked about a potential handball on Samuele Ricci in the second half of yesterday’s game against AC Milan. However, he made it clear he didn’t think it was a handball.
It was in the second half of Cagliari-Milan, after the Rossoneri had scored their opener, that Semih Kilicsoy attempted an overhead kick. His effort was goal-bound, but it was stopped by Samuele Ricci and his right arm.
However, as Ricci was very close to the striker and also held his arm close to his body, the referee Rosario Abisso didn’t award a penalty (nor did VAR tell him to have a look). After the game, Cagliari manager Pisacane was very honest in his assessment of the situation.
“I already said last week that I don’t like commenting on the referee’s performance.
“I have to be honest, that’s not a penalty for me. If it had hit the left arm, you might think he was extending the silhouette, but not the right.
“We must also learn to help referees, because at the slightest error, people try to make it into a weekly disaster. I prefer to think the officials are doing their work in good faith and we must try to help them, not stir up controversy,” he stated as transcribed by Football Italia.
Pisacane deserves a lot of credit here for not making matters worse, but the truth is that Milan’s Scudetto rivals have been making a meal out of the situation on social media. The fact is that it wasn’t a penalty, as also confirmed by the refereeing expert Luca Marelli (via MilanNews).
“Cagliari’s number 9 attempts an overhead kick that is deflected by Ricci’s arm. The check was rather quick, this arm contact is not punishable, and Ricci was lucky: he touched the ball with his right arm, very close to his body and near the opponent’s foot.
“If he had touched the ball with his left, it would have been a penalty because his arm was much more open and farther from his body,” he said.
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