Italian newspapers have criticised referee Jesus Gil Manzano for awarding Manchester United a “very soft” penalty against Roma and argued that Harry Maguire should have been sent off in the second half.
Manchester United won 3-2 against Roma on Tuesday in the Champions League, but the Spanish official’s performance came under scrutiny after two contentious decisions following the interval.
Corriere dello Sport, Tuttosport and Gazzetta dello Sport all questioned the penalty converted by Bruno Fernandes. The decision followed contact between Matheus Cunha’s left foot and Gianluca Mancini’s right knee inside the Roma penalty area.
Corriere dello Sport said Manzano had punished Mancini for negligence, but accepted there was a valid argument for the opposite decision.
“However, the opposite interpretation is also perfectly reasonable, as Cunha lifted his foot, catching Mancini’s knee,” the newspaper wrote.
Fernandes initially missed the spot-kick, but Manzano ordered it to be retaken after Bryan Cristante encroached into the penalty area before the ball was struck.
The infringement was considered a marginal one, with Cristante’s foot on the edge of the area when Fernandes took the penalty. The Roma midfielder then cleared the ball after Devis Vasquez saved the attempt, meaning a retake was required.
Fernandes converted the second penalty.
Both Corriere dello Sport and Gazzetta dello Sport gave Manzano a rating of 4/10. Gazzetta said the referee “got everything wrong” during the second half.
The second major incident came after Manchester United had already levelled the match. Maguire, who had been booked earlier, brought Santiago Castro to the ground and appeared to strike him in a sensitive area.
Corriere dello Sport argued that the Manchester United defender should have received a second yellow card for unsporting behaviour, which would have resulted in his dismissal.
Lorenzo Bettoni is the Editor of Football Italia.
A further assessment said Fernandes should not have been booked in the first half, while describing the original penalty as “super soft” despite it being saved. It agreed with the decision to order a retake, saying that two Roma players, including Pisilli, had encroached into the goal area.
The same assessment also argued that, had the manager wanted to protect the lead, the two central defenders should have replaced attackers and the formation changed to either 5-4-1 or 5-3-2.
