Can a Serie A lunchtime match deliver a spectacle of goals, emotions, and referee controversies? The answer was a resounding yes, as demonstrated by Sunday`s 12:30 PM clash between Sassuolo and Udinese in the 5th round of the league.
Sassuolo secured their second win of the season, effectively capitalizing on an excellent first half that saw them take a two-goal lead, largely thanks to a finally brilliant Lauriente. Udinese managed to pull one back through Davis, but in the closing stages, they were punished for the third and final time by young substitute Iannoni, who scored his maiden Serie A goal.
Udinese`s fervent protests were ignited by two penalties initially awarded but subsequently overturned following VAR review. Bianconeri director Franco Collavino immediately voiced his strong stance after the match: “We have reviewed the images and we are very angry. There were two VAR interventions that completely overturned the referee`s decisions and changed the course of a difficult match that could have taken a different turn. In the first incident, the images were unclear, and applying VAR in that context makes no sense; in fact, it creates more confusion: the images were not sharp, and the referee was only a few meters away, having, from our perspective, correctly assessed the situation. The second is serious because it`s a clear penalty, Solet was hit on the foot.”
