Referee Jesús Gil Manzano’s decision to rule out Aston Villa’s last-gasp winner against Juventus on Wednesday sparked the anger of coach Unai Emery, but Italian media insisted it was an overall correct call.
The hosts scored in the closing seconds of the Champions League clash through Morgan Rogers but, following a silent check, the VAR convinced Gil Manzano to disallow the goal.
While Emery complained that the contact between the two players which led to the decision was ‘very soft’, all the main Italian sports outlets agree upon the fact that it was ‘right’ to cancel the goal due to a Diego Carlos foul on goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio.
Italian media’s opinion on Aston Villa’s disallowed goal against Juventus
Analysing the decision, Corriere dello Sport wrote that Diego Carlos’ challenge on Di Gregorio was a ‘clear foul’, as Aston Villa’s player hit the latter with his ‘right harm, without worrying about getting the ball’.
Tuttosport added that Gil Manzano showed ‘authority’ and proved to be ‘top level’, the newspaper noted ‘guts and high-level skill’ were required to make such a delicate call.
As reported by Il Bianconero, Gazzetta dello Sport also echoed the other sports outlets by writing that the Diego Carlos’ foul was ‘evident’.
However, the goalless draw between Aston Villa and Juventus was also marked by other decisions that sparked the discontent of the home fans, such as two yellow cards for Youri Tielemans and Leon Bailey in the opening minutes that prompted the crowd to ask for the same treatment for the Bianconeri players.
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