Late handball controversy in Florence
Juventus were forced to settle for a 2-2 draw away at Fiorentina after a late penalty appeal was waved away. The visitors had twice come from behind, with Nick Woltemade and Gleison Bremer cancelling out strikes from Mateo Pellegrino and Alieu Njie.
With the match level in the dying moments, the ball struck Fiorentina's Joao Mario on the arm inside the penalty area. The referee allowed play to continue, and VAR chose not to intervene, leaving the Bianconeri deeply frustrated.
Pundits slam VAR inaction
Italian media and refereeing analysts were united in their belief that a spot-kick should have been awarded. Leading sports dailies La Gazzetta dello Sport, Tuttosport, and Corriere dello Sport all concluded that the handball was punishable.
Former referee and DAZN pundit Luca Marelli provided a detailed breakdown of the incident, dismissing arguments that the deflection excused the contact. "The point of contact is below the elbow, more on the arm than in the armpit," Marelli told DAZN. "The ball deflects off the player unexpectedly, but his arm was far from his body."
Marelli noted that although Kolo Muani missed an initial header and the ball deflected off a boot, Joao Mario's arm was positioned at an unnatural 90-degree angle.
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"There is no doubt the Fiorentina player touched the ball with his arm, and he should have been punished," Marelli added. "Calling the incident unexpected is only one possible explanation, but VAR should have brought the referee to the monitor to award a penalty."
Bianconeri drop valuable points
The failure to secure three points leaves Juventus playing catch-up in Serie A. The Turin side currently sit seventh in the table, having amassed 18 points from their opening 11 matches.
While their resilience to bounce back twice shows character, the late refereeing controversy will make this feel like two points dropped. Fiorentina, meanwhile, survive the late scare to take away a valuable point, keeping them in 15th place on nine points.
Climbing the Serie A table
Juventus face an uphill battle to push up the standings and must quickly channel their frustration into upcoming league fixtures. With the team currently lingering outside the top spots, converting draws into victories will be vital as they look to rescue their domestic campaign and close the gap on the league leaders.