This match was postponed due to the Olympic Opening Ceremony being held at San Siro. The ceremony was stunning, showing the very best of Italy, with the theme of "Armonia," (Harmony) and emphasized peace and good sportsmanship. Clearly, they took all of those good vibes with them, because this match was fiery and a bit savage, and of course, there was more controversy regarding the refereeing and discipline. The final score was Milan 1, Como 1, but the score does not even tell half the story. Had Mariani actually called everything, he'd have blisters on his lips from using his whistle so much. And certainly, the wrong manager was sent off as we saw some shocking behavior from Fabregas. Things got uglier as the game went on, showing some of the worst of Italy, there was no Olympic spirit here.
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| If managers get to participate now, can we re-sign Gattuso please? |
There were literally more fouls, more arms/elbows to the face than there were shots in the first half. And that is not an exaggeration at all. I counted two shots from Milan - one from Leão and one from Tomori, both saved by Butez. The shot from Tomori was particularly brilliant, from a great cross from Athekame, forcing Butez into a spectacular save. Vojvoda actually put the ball into the back of the net in the 25th minute, but not only was Ricci fouled hard at the beginning of the play (which was never even called,) the goal was called back for being offside.
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| Tomori with a brilliant first half, at both ends of the pitch. |
The 32nd minute was when Maignan assisted Nico Paz, who obviously took advantage of the rare error from our goalkeeper and scored. 1-0 Como. Here's the thing, though. Nico Paz was one card away from suspension going into their match vs. Fiorentina last weekend. During that match, he stomped on a player, a bad foul, and was not carded. Had he been carded, he would not have been available for this match, and would not have scored. And sure, it's disappointing that Maignan made the error. But I'm far more disappointed in the egregious quantity and exceptionally poor quality of refereeing this entire season.
By that same token, Rabiot, who scored a brace in the first leg away to Como, was suspiciously sent off with a double yellow in our match on Friday. Which looks even worse now, particularly when the AIA released Ref Cam footage, but edited the part out where he reportedly did whatever they said he did to deserve the second yellow and sending off/suspension for this match. That is just downright diabolical. Nothing says "We're hiding something" like an edited video. Don't release it at all if you're going to be that blatant.
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| They tried to take him out, and still they failed. Warrior. |
Tomori made a great clearance in the 38th minute, saving Maignan, and a minute later, Maignan showed up with a save from a Sergi Roberto shot. But the rest was all fouls, many not called. Mariani let a lot go, but Como players clearly have learned a lot from Fabregas, of that infamous Barca team, because they really went down easily/dramatically, while the themselves were fouling to kill.
Case in point, Pavlović. Van der Brempt fouled him pretty hard in the 14th minute. No call. He was fouled a few other times, as well, and I actually don't remember any of the fouls being called. But in the 42nd minute, Van der Brempt kicked Pavlović's leg, studs up. Zero attempt to play the ball, every attempt for maximum damage. Like if you watch the replay, you will hear bones crunching. No red card, not even a yellow. And you could see him hobbling the rest of the half, then he was subbed off at halftime. A play like that is VAR-reviewable, too. So what happened?
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| It actually looks even worse on video. |
There were concerns about a serious injury for Pavlović postmatch, but so far, tests only show a lot of internal bleeding around the bone. He is in doubt for Sunday. Someone at MilanNews.it wrote a satirical piece saying that it was right that Mariani did not card Van der Brempt, that a fracture is required for a card. To be honest, that's how Mariani reffed this match.
And I don't usually mind when refs let a lot of things go, so long as no one gets hurt and they are consistent. But a minute later, Jashari was fouled just outside of the area, and he slid so hard, his arm was bleeding. No card. But a few minutes later, when there was minimal contact from Nkunku on Sergi Roberto and then the Como player collided with his teammate Van der Brempt and they both went sprawling and stayed down, he called the foul on Nkunku. That's just not okay.
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| Jashari was taken down, too, but no card given, either. |
As mentioned, at halftime, Pavlović was subbed off and Gabbia replaced him. Van der Brempt, not content with having broken one Milan player, was attempting a shot, and kicked Maignan's hand, which was terrifying. But at least Mariani called that one, it was too blatant to miss. And a few minutes later, Nico Paz, who again, should not have even been in this match, was shown a yellow card for just lunging in, sticking his leg out and taking out Nkunku while running, so he will miss Como's showdown with Juventus instead.
And not to be too much of a conspiracy theorist, but Como having Nico Paz vs. Milan was more important to a certain-team-who-shall-not-be-named who are currently league leaders than having him this coming weekend for Juventus, because Milan are a much bigger threat to their title race. Do you think it's really a coincidence that they got an opposing player sent off in their match for a double yellow just 30 minutes into their match to take all three points? The day after a crucial Milan player was also shown a double yellow for [whatever they edited out of the video] ahead of this Como match? Two players sent off, back to back, from two of their biggest rivals, at a crucial point of the season, during or ahead of big matches?
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| Nico Paz, who shouldn't have even been there, lunging in to take Nkunku down. |
Those two or three decisions alone made a five point difference on the table. If Kalulu had not been sent off in Inter-Juve, Bastoni would have been, as he was already on a yellow card at that point. And that match was close enough that the result absolutely would have been reversed. So Inter gained three points when they should not have, they should only be on 58 points. And if Milan had Rabiot, we definitely would have had all three points in this match rather than just one, so we would be on 56 points. In fact, that is guaranteed if Nico Paz had rightfully been carded on the weekend. Milan should be -2 behind Inter, but we are -7 instead. Five points difference.
When they say championships are "won or lost" in certain situations, in Serie A the Marotta League, this is what they are talking about. Milan have dropped points a number of times already due to referee errors, to which the AIA admitted to, and just said, "Ooops." (Even if they actually suspended a number of refs for their shocking performances.) Even Juventus got an apology this weekend, but never Milan. And Inter have also been the benefactor of a number of ref errors. Always.
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| The shameless dive, celebrating the injustice, then an empty apology... Captain of the Marotta League. |
The same exact thing happened during our Scudetto season, Inter never received a single red card during a match all season long (and it certainly wasn't for not deserving them.) In fact, Inter have only received five red cards total in the last five years, while Milan have been shown 21 red cards. Even neutrals who have watched the two teams play would be shocked, it should be the opposite, or at least Inter should be much closer in number of players sent off.
But 21 red cards makes Milan second only to Lazio over the five years, and Inter play a lot more like Lazio than Milan does. It's the same every year, though. Inter have the most fouls, the least cards, the most penalties awarded, the least penalties conceded. And Milan are the most penalized, and probably the recipients of the most referee errors as well. This isn't conspiracy, there is actual data to back this up.
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| Pulisic is one who had a goal robbed earlier this season... but Milan has no political power to change things. |
Worse still, Milan are politically impotent. We all heard Scaroni shamelessly pandering to Marotta this past week, meanwhile, when Tare actually went on the pitch to try to defend Rabiot on Friday, he was fined €10,000. What kind of organized crime is this Marotta League? And the Club apparently has finally called the AIA to complain about the errors this season, most of which the AIA themselves have admitted were errors. Does anyone actually believe that something will come of this? I am not holding my breath.
But there was plenty more douchebaggery to come in this match, and Mariani's unusually one-sided refereeing was just the tip of the iceberg. Modrić had a shot saved by Butez. Then Allegri brought on Fofana for Ricci, and Saelemaekers made his return from injury to replace Athekame in the 54th minute. A few minutes later, our German hero-playing-with-the-broken-toe, Füllkrug, was subbed on for Nkunku. Butez was carded for time wasting, because Mariani knew that time wasting is far more important than protecting players.
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| Absolute brilliance in the midst of controversy. |
The joke was on Butez anyway, he was caught well out of his area when Jashari sent a beautiful ball forward for Leão, who lobbed the ball from distance perfectly over the goalkeeper and just under the bar to equalize. 1-1 all. Seriously, go back and watch this goal, it was delicious. And Leão ran back and hugged Maignan, too, as if to say "This goal is for you" after his earlier error. Leão was awarded Serie A's Player of the Match, but the fans knew that Jashari was the real MVP. He had a fantastic performance in this match.
The goal was apparently a little too delicious, because a few minutes later, Jacobo Ramón got his boxers in a bunch and shoved Leão, for which Mariani carded them both. Yeah, that typically happens to Milan. Like Modrić getting a yellow for getting slammed in the back, for example. Leão did not shove back, but he was carded. And those cards add up, too. Make it make sense.
As for actually taking chances, Fofana made his usual offering to the people in the nosebleed seats, sending the ball well over the bar. Then Leão actually hit the crossbar, but was apparently offside anyway. Como substitute Douvikas was also apparently offside when he forced Maignan into a save. And then, the most shocking thing I've seen all year happened.
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| Leão showing Maignan love after the goal. |
In the preview, I facetiously joked about Cardinale not getting his cash grab to be able to play this match in Australia, to the relief of pretty much everyone but him. But I also wrote about a manufactured acrimony between Allegri and Fabregas, I had no idea where it came from. But then I remembered how Fabregas was so upset that Milan won 3-1 over Como while his disciples wasted their energy with 750 passes while Allegri's side only made 200 passes and got a convincing win.
I think it likely goes back further than that, but Allegri and Milan 100% live rent free in Fabregas' little head. And so, when Saelemaekers was already battling two Como players for the ball near the touchline, Fabregas reached out and pulled Saelemaekers back so he could not win the ball back. Yes, you read that right. A manager interfered with the match while the ball was in play.
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| How did the fourth official not see this? He was right there. |
Saelemaekers turned to Fabregas and angrily confronted him, and then all hell broke loose. Apparently, neither Mariani, the linesman, nor the fourth official, who was right there, saw this happen, or so their responses would have you believe. But Allegri was not going to let this egregious act of horrific unsporting behavior go unnoticed, so he "left his technical area" and went to confront Fabregas.
Fabregas, of course, was not man enough to face him, instead, two of his assistants were the ones arguing with Allegri. So, when Mariani got over to the quickly escalating situation, first, he sent off Allegri with a red card. Then he showed a red card to one or two of Fabregas' assistants. Meanwhile, Saelemaekers was trying to explain what had happened, and he kept pointing to Fabregas, but, perhaps not believing any manager would be that boldly moronic, Mariani did not seem to listen to him, but rather insisted that Allegri exit the area.
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| Notice Princess Fabregas can't even defend himself. |
While all this was going down, reality seemed to hit Fabregas, and he visibly apologized to Saelemaekers, who was polite enough to him, considering the shocking situation. I don't know why Fabregas thought just an apology would get him off the hook, but it turns out, he was right. He was literally the only person in this scenario who went unpunished. Nothing. No fine, no ban, nothing.
Perhaps he actually knew he would get away with it, because last year, in the Coppa Italia Semifinal, Simone Inzaghi was well out of his technical area and actually on the pitch, forcing Theo Hernández to actually run around him, and nothing happened to him. He never even apologized. Or, in our Derby in November, when Chivu blocked Rabiot from a taking a quick throw-in. Nothing happened to him, either. Chivu also came out and defended Bastoni's appalling lack of sportsmanship in Saturday's Derby d'Italia, too, when he celebrated getting Kalulu sent off after his obvious dive. In fact, Fabregas quoted Chivu in his apology. I found bitter irony in Tare's prematch dismissal of the Bastoni-Kalulu controversy. I know why he said it, but it was just far too optimistic.
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| What is actually wrong with these soulless managers? |
And I have to ask: what the actual [censored] is going on in Serie A? Is the clear and obvious matchfixing that Inter have been engaging in since before Calciopoli not enough? Now they are just doing anything they want and getting away with it? And what is with these young managers, that they cannot exercise an ounce of self-control and stay out of the game? Particularly, apparently, when facing Milan? I loved Allegri's sarcastic, angry response. When told that Fabregas had apologized, he said, "Next time someone runs down the line, I'll make a sliding tackle and join in, too." I would pay good money to see that, to be honest. I'm so done being the nice team.
Allegri's assistant coach, Landucci, stepped right in, he is well prepared, as this is Allegri's third red card of the season on top of the suspension he came to us with. He subbed Pulisic on for Leão. Then Saelemaekers, visibly upset from the entire situation, began to play differently. making fouls and challenges he had not been doing before the incident. Maignan made a save, then Pulisic had his shot saved. Douvikas had his shot go wide.
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| When Leão is not smiling, you know something is dreadfully wrong. |
And here is where another controversy came into play. Saelemaekers fouled Valle in the 87th minute, for which Mariani awarded him a yellow card. Less than a minute later, he made a worse challenge on Baturina. Mariani, whether out of mercy or ignorance, did not give him a second yellow. And I'm not going to lie, Saelemaekers would have deserved both yellow cards, and to be sent off.
But there is a bigger question here: Would Saelemaekers have made either of those rash challenges if he wasn't so upset from being pulled back by the opposing manager? And having his own manager sent off instead? Maybe this crossed Mariani's mind. Unlike Fabbri last Friday with Rabiot, who couldn't show the second yellow and the red card fast enough, Mariani did take a minute, perhaps listening to advice from his fellow officials, and simply awarded Como a free kick instead.
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| The video evidence and the data says the ref is the problem, Mariani, not Milan. |
But now Fabregas was incensed. Imagine, doing something so grievous and wanting someone else punished for something much more benign? One journalist pointed out the blatant hypocrisy, "Fabregas holds Saelemaekers by the shirt to prevent him from playing and then asks for his expulsion for a subsequent foul? A shameful scene. He deserves the same criticism leveled at Bastoni. With an aggrevating factor: he is the coach." A former referee said that Mariani was right not to award a second yellow to the player, but that Fabregas deserved "a clear red card." Just the mere fact that Fabregas keeps calling it a "gesture" instead of a foul or interference or unsporting behavior tells you all you need to know about Fabregas' lack of remorse or character.
After the match, there was a loud confrontation between Allegri and Fabregas just outside of the press area, in which Allegri was heard screaming at the Como manager, "You're a [censored], a little kid who just started coaching." Not ideal to have the press hear, but he was not wrong, either. It is well known that I am not an Allegri fan, but if I could have, I would have been right there with him, encouraging him to say even more in this situation. Which I know doesn't help anything, but since Fabregas wasn't punished, at least he would have heard some truths that might possibly deter him in the future. Or at least make him cry.
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| The Milan fans whistled them, but they are up against |
The fallout from this match is that Allegri is banned for one match, for defending his player "leaving the technical area to argue with an opposing team official." Fabregas' assistant Diego Perez, also sent off, is banned for one match for protecting his princess manager "leaving the bench, challenging the ref's actions, and creating a tense atmosphere." Another Como assistant, Davide Catteneo, is also banned for protecting his princess manager "leaving the technical area to argue with the opposing manager." But the real fallout is that Serie A loses. Everyone who witnessed it loses.
And what of Fabregas? Can't he be punished retroactively, using video evidence? Apparently not, according to one source. Article 61 of the Sporting Justice code reportedly only allows for video evidence to be used for specific incidents, and even if serious unsporting behavior is one of them, this interpretation here believes the clarifications about unsporting behavior in that Article only apply to players. While I seriously disagree, how much more unsporting can you get than to have a manager do this? Clearly, Fabregas is not getting punished. Just like Bastoni is not. Nor is Van der Brempt, who almost broke Pavlović's leg. The most guilty go unpunished, while the least guilty are severely punished. Serie A Marotta League wouldn't have it any other way. (By the way, look up how long Juventus' Chiellini and Comolli are banned for what they said after Kalulu was sent off. Sorry does not even begin to cover that harsh punishment.)
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| This match was perfect for Tom Brady to see. |
How perfect, too, that Milan's guest of honor was American football legend, Tom Brady, who was no stranger to controversy. He was infamously part of the "Deflategate" scandal when his team were found to have cheated their way to NFL title(s.) To be fair, now that he is retired, he is actually a part owner of Birmingham City FC, and is actively involved with the club, in particular, their nutrition and fitness division. So he probably appreciated the chance to not only see a top tier team play, but to be able to talk to English-speaking execs at such a large club as well. Or, he could have just been there for the Olympics.
Meanwhile, the Olympic spirit continues in Milano, with the biggest scandal being the Norwegian biathlete who confessed to the entire world his recent infidelity in some sort of emotional breakdown surrounding the loss of his now ex-girlfriend in an interview after winning bronze in his event. But that was his own personal drama, and only affects him and the lucky women in his life. It's not like he cheated in his sport or compromised the integrity of the Games.
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| Even Baresi, walking with a former Inter player, showed the Olympic Spirit in the Opening Ceremony. |
Whereas in Serie A, Rocchi is blaming the players instead of the refs, and the President of the AIA just lost his appeal and will serve his 13 month ban, so will now likely be forced to step down after all. With talks of possibly having the AIA go into administration, FIGC President Gravina has announced a new plan to revolutionize the referee sector. Whether or not that keeps them safe from the Marotta League in the future is doubtful, given the absurd amount of power and influence Italy gives to certain men who are too feeble to win of their own accord. I mean I'm not Catholic, but for Lent, I've given up all hope of this league ever being free of corruption. In fact, I've actually given up on it permanently.
And just cleaning up the politics in the AIA, if it even works, doesn't change the shocking lack of morals from both players, managers, and even directors we have seen just in this past week. None of it gives Milan (or other affected clubs) their points back, or even potential titles we lost to all of this match-fixing and not-so-subtle subterfuge. When people behave like this in sport, it ruins it for everyone. Results, absolutely, but also the experiences. And even with a 24 match unbeaten streak, yet again, there was no Olympic spirit here.