Refereeing designator Gianluca Rocchi has explained away the controversy that erupted when he was spotted in the stands with an Inter wristband.
The official was sitting in the hospitality area of San Siro for the Nerazzurri’s 4-0 Serie A victory over Atalanta last weekend.
A photograph went viral on social media because it showed him wearing a bracelet with ‘Inter’ written on it and the blue and black colours.
Some supporters of other clubs tried to make it look like favouritism for the Scudetto holders.
Rocchi shrugs off Inter controversy
“In all honesty, I wouldn’t even want to waste time answering that question,” Rocchi told Radio Deejay when asked about the incident.
“I travel around a lot and want to watch the referees from the stands as well as on video, to understand what kind of form they are in.
“By going into the stadiums, I am often in the stands as guest of the host club and they give me these wristbands.”
When Rocchi identified eight errors that had slipped through the VAR net in the first half of the 2023-24 season, it was noted that two of them directly helped Inter.
Lazio had two clear penalties against Ac Milan denied recently. Surely a pro Inter conspiracy would have awarded these nailed on penalties against Milan!