Paulo Dybala’s late penalty salvaged a point for underperforming Juventus in a heavyweight Serie A clash against Inter Milan. Simone Inzaghi’s side grabbed a half-time lead through Edin Dzeko, but Denzel Dumfries’ late blunder helped the Bianconeri seal a 1-1 draw.
Dzeko once again put his ‘killer instincts’ on full display, latching onto a rebound following Hakan Calhanoglu’s long-range screamer in the 19th to hand the Nerazzurri a half-time lead. An uneventful match that witnessed very few clear-cut chances looked like it was Inter’s to take it, but Dybala took advantage of the 89th-minute penalty to steal two points away from Inzaghi’s team.
Although referee Maurizio Mariani initially waved play on, an intervention from the VAR room over Dumfries’ high boot eventually gifted Juventus an all-important spot-kick. Mariani’s decision to award the penalty left Inzaghi fuming, with the ex-Lazio manager’s angry reaction earning him an expulsion.
During the post-match interview, Inzaghi delivered his verdict on the controversial moment.
“It was I think the only way we could concede a goal. It’s disappointing, as I feel we controlled the game from start to finish, we allowed Juventus nothing and I am not happy to have seen two points thrown away,” he said, as cited by TUTTOmercatoWEB.
“The referee was right there, he could see the incident and didn’t need to be called over for that. I am disappointed for our fans, as we played well and deserved more.
“We were never under pressure, we controlled from start to finish. I admit my gesture was not a good image to portray, but I felt in that moment it was not a VAR incident. As a coach, at the 89th minute of a game like that, with the referee right there waving play on, it’s natural you’re going to get a bit angry the way I did.“
Inter, who trailed top-placed Napoli by eight points ahead of the kick-off, squandered a prime opportunity to benefit from the Partenopei’s 0-0 draw with Roma. Moreover, the Nerazzurri looked to be on the cusp of beating bitter rivals in back-to-back Serie A home H2Hs for the first time since 2010. However, they will now have to wait for another opportunity.
Meanwhile, Juventus saw their four-match winning Serie A streak suffer a setback as they continue to trail the league pacesetters by a staggering ten points. Massimiliano Allegri’s team produced another blunt display, barely putting Samir Handanovic to the test throughout the entire 90 minutes.