Article by Maria Olteanu – Published Saturday, October 25, 2025 22:06 / Updated Saturday, October 25, 2025 22:44
The president of Inter, Giuseppe Marotta (68 years old), criticized the referee's decision after the contact between Mkhitaryan and Di Lorenzo, after which the Italian champion received a penalty and opened the scoring in the match won 3-1 against Cristi Chivu's team, in the 8th stage of Serie A.
What happened in Naples? In the 30th minute, Giovanni Di Lorenzo broke into Inter's box, and after a duel with veteran Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Napoli's captain collapsed, calling for a 11-yard shot. Initially, the “central” Maurizio Mariani let the game continue, and the “nerazzurri” came out on the counterattack, but, in the end, the game was stopped and the Italian referee dictated a penalty for the hosts, without reviewing the phase on VAR. The review was later carried out, but Mariani was not called to the monitor and the penalty kick stood.
After the match, Inter's president was extremely unhappy, challenging the refereeing decision, which he believes changed the course of the game and influenced the final result.
Marotta, sharp reaction after: “It created anger and bitterness”
“The penalty in the first half directed the game.” These were the words of Marotta, the president of Inter, regarding the penalty awarded to Napoli after a contact in the box between Di Lorenzo and Mkhitaryan. A sharp comment and a firm stance from the Milan club.
“This is a contribution I want to make to the system: the penalty was decisive and was signaled by the assistant. I think such a dynamic would have required the intervention of VAR,” said Marotta.
“Napoli legitimized their victory in the last half hour,” Inter's president continued, “but our players gave everything. Their success was mainly triggered by this episode. When Rocchi says 'no more easy penalties', then we have to understand what penalties are awarded. I want to make a contribution, let's shed light on this,” he insisted, quoted by Gazzetta dello Sports.
“I support the center referee, but if an assistant comes in who has a much more limited perspective, then what else should we say? That penalty created anger and bitterness. I'm referring to the chronology of the match and the decision made by the referee,” he added.
Instead, Marotta avoided commenting on the dispute between Lautaro and Conte: “Honestly, I would skip this topic…”.
Images from the match Napoli – Inter 3-1
Serie A standings
