Juve paying the penalty for past wrongs?
ROME: Ahead of this weekend’s Italian Serie A matches it is the issue of penalties, predominantly those not given, that has dominated the build-up.
Juventus are up in ar ms at the number of penalties they have been awarded this season, claiming they are being treated unfairly, while Inter Milan counter that if that’s the case then they are hardest hit by refereeing decisions.
Juve missed the chance to go back to the top of the table in midweek when they were held to a 0-0 draw at Parma.
During the match, the visitors thought they should have had two penalties while the hosts also complained that they were denied a spotkick.
In all three cases the referee probably got the decision right, but that hasn’t stopped the complaints.
Juve coach Antonio Conte was particularly indignant following the Parma match believing also that his side were denied a penalty two weeks ago against Siena.
“I’m starting to sense a horrible atmosphere in which the referees are afraid to give Juve a penalty,” he said. “We’re annoyed by this – even the bottom team in the league have had more penalties than us.
“The truth is if they whistle against us they haven’t got it wrong, but if a referee gives one in our favour then he’ll have to make the sign of the cross and hope he won’t be murdered the next day.
“I cannot accept this but then I hear the same accusations: ‘You only know how to steal.’
“But who? All you have to do is look at what’s been happening for years.
“We got two points against Siena and Parma but if the referees had been calmer and paying more attention, we would have had six points and we’d be talking about an escape rather than second place.”
Conte believes Juve are paying for their past in which they were stripped of two league titles and relegated to Serie B for their part in the infamous Calciopoli match-fixing scandal in which they contacted the Refereeing Commission to ask for specific “friendly” referees to officiate their games.
“The explanation for everything can be found in going back several years,” moaned Conte.
“I’m not even angry, I’m diasappointed because a sportsman struggles to accept certain things.”
Juventus created almost nothing against Siena and in fact could even have lost the game.
Against Parma they hit the post early on but then again failed to create many clear-cut chances.
They will have to do better against Catania today having failed to score in their last two matches.
Inter coach Claudio Ranieri as good as accused Juve of sour grapes.
His own side, who hosted Bologna last night, had not won in five games in all competitions, but he said everyone can complain about the number of spot-kicks they get. “I don’t agree with him (Conte). If the referees are afraid of giving Juventus penalties then with us they’re terrified,” he smirked. REMIER League heavyweights Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool will look to draw a line under a week to forget by booking their places in the FA Cup quarter-finals this weekend.
Arsenal crashed to their heaviest ever European defeat in mid-week, a 4-0 thrashing by AC Milan that has all but extinguished the club’s chances of progressing to the last eight of the Champions League.
The Gunners must now pick themselves up from that traumatic trouncing as they prepare for a tricky trip to Sunderland, exactly one week after scrambling a last-gasp 2-1 win over the Black Cats in the league.
The celebratory mood that accompanied last weekend’s league win – clinched by a farewell goal from Thierry
PHenry – evaporated during the course of Wednesday’s mauling at the San Siro. A downcast Arsene Wenger described the result as a “disaster” and voiced concern that it could send Arsenal’s season into an irretrievable nosedive unless his players responded swiftly.
“We have a big game on Saturday and it’s an opportunity to show that we have character and mental strength, and that we can respond after such a shocking defeat,” Wenger said.
Chelsea, meanwhile, face a potentially awkward home tie against Bir mingham City today, with manager Andre Villas-boas struggling to maintain control of his squad after last weekend’s 2-0 league reverse at Everton.
Villas-boas reportedly faced an open revolt during a training ground bust-up last Sunday when Chelsea’s players were ordered to report for work on their day off as punishment for the performance at Goodison Park.
With billionaire Russian owner Roman Abramovich looking on, several senior Chelsea players are reported to have challenged Villas-boas over his team selections, tactics and inability to respond to pressure.
Villas-boas admitted this week that there had been a difference of opinion but denied “strong words” had been exchanged.
“That is normal,” VillasBoas said. “They don’t have to back my project. It’s the owner who backs my project.”
The Portuguese manager also played down suggestions that he had lost the confidence of Abramovich.
“I don’t think so, but it’s a question that you will have to ask the owner,” Villas-boas said. “I think the owner has full trust in me and we will continue to progress with the ideas that we have.”
Liverpool will aim to move on from last weekend’s Luis Suarez controversy when they entertain Championship side Brighton and Hove Albion at Anfield tomorrow.
The Merseysiders issued a flurry of apologies after Suarez defied club orders by declining to shake the hand of Manchester United defender Patrice Evra before last week’s league battle, the first meeting of the clubs since Suarez returned from an eight-game ban for racially abusing Evra.
Liverpool veteran Jamie Carragher said the Reds were determined not to suffer an upset against the Seagulls, who famously beat Liverpool at Anfield during their run to the 1983 final.
“It’s a massive game for us,” Carragher said. “If we win, we’ll be into the quarter-finals. And if you do well there, you’re at Wembley again (for the semifinals). It certainly keeps the season going.”