Referee Clement Turpin has been on the receiving end of criticism in the Italian press after his performance in the second leg of the Champions League semi-final between Inter and Milan on Tuesday night.
The Frenchman showed the first yellow card of the evening to Milan’s Malick Thiaw, but many believe he should have been much quicker in handing out the cautions after a series of strong challenges in the opening minutes of the game.
La Gazzetta dello Sport highlighted four particular instances where Turpin probably should have shown yellow cards, three of which came within the opening 25 minutes.
The report referenced a block on Denzel Dumfries from Rafael Leao in the sixth minute, Theo Hernandez’s clash with Nicolo Barella after 10 minutes and Davide Calabria’s challenge on Federico Dimarco on the 24th.
The most serious incident, according to Gazzetta, was the reckless challenge from Rade Krunic on Hakan Calhanoglu on the 81st minute, a challenge which they feel was worthy of a red, claiming that it could have ended in serious injury had the Turkish international been in a slightly different position.
There had also been a risky stamp from Francesco Acerbi on Sandro Tonali that went completely unpunished in the first half.
All in all, there were six yellow cards handed out on Tuesday night, but both Milan and Inter were fortunate that the figure didn’t reach double figures in the end.