Former referee: Haaland did not foul Buick before he singled out, and the referee s penalty standards were consistent

Former Serie A referee Marelli said that in the first round of the Champions League, Manchester City striker Haaland did not foul on Napoli defender Buickma before getting a one-on-one opportunity.

In the first round of the Champions League held this week, Manchester City defeated Napoli 2-0 at home. In the 18th minute of the game, Haaland got a one-on-one chance. Napoli defender Di Lorenzo made a tackle foul. The referee did not make a penalty immediately. After being reminded by VAR, the referee went to the sidelines to watch the video replay and sent Di Lorenzo off a red card.

However, some Napoli fans believe that before this single shot, Manchester City goalkeeper Donaluma kicked off with a big kick, Haaland made a foul while fighting and knocked down Napoli defender Buickma. In response to this, Marelli said: "It is correct to send out Di Lorenzo. The physical contact between Haaland and Buickma is a normal fight between forwards and defenders in the game. I did not see any fouls."

Marelli continued: "The point that needs to be clarified in this game is the referee's judgment standard, because I saw the newspaper saying that Napoli fans were very dissatisfied because the referee only judged three fouls against Napoli in the whole game. This is true, but the judgment data needs to be fully considered. The referee only judged 7 fouls in the whole game, including 4 fouls against Manchester City and 3 fouls against Napoli."

Mann City player Nico Gonzalez did not get a yellow card for his foul on Anguysa. Marelli said: "Argentine players may indeed get a yellow card for this reckless action, but I want to remind everyone again that the judge should be based on his judgment scale throughout the game, rather than a single penalty."

Finally, Marelli said: "It is inevitable that the referee will make mistakes on the court, but the referee in yesterday's Champions League match did not affect the results of the game as a whole. In fact, he only made one major mistake in the game, that is, he did not see the obvious red card action clearly at the first time, but changed the red card after the VAR reminder.