Referee Davide Massa is at risk of receiving a punishment from the AIA after a handful of controversial moments in Inter’s clash with Napoli.
The Nerazzurri cruised to a 3-0 win over the defending champions at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona on Sunday evening, a result that didn’t go down well in the Campania capital.
Massa left Napoli coach Walter Mazzarri and president Aurelio De Laurentiis furious after the full time whistle, with the former not talking to the media and the latter angrily complaining to the FIGC and the AIA.
As reported by Il Mattino via Calciomercato.com, Massa could be punished by the AIA after his officiating in Inter’s win over Napoli, possibly being sent to the second division or suspended for a few rounds.
He is also not expected to officiate a Partenopei match again this term. His decision not to award a foul after a collision between Lautaro Martinez and Stanislav Lobotka in the build-up to Hakan Calhanoglu’s opener and not giving a penalty after a challenge on Victor Osimhen upset the home side.
This is not the first time Massa has been at the centre of controversy. On March 13 2022, he was in the VAR room for a 1-1 draw between Torino and Inter, where he failed to highlight an Andrea Belotti penalty after an apparent foul from Andrea Ranocchia. He was suspended for four rounds as a result.
I fully expected the penalty to be given. The contacted to the Achilles heel is minimal but he certainly does make contact. I was surprised it wasn’t given. Nothing really went right for Napoli last night.