Juventus manager Igor Tudor did not hold back his anger at officials, following his side’s disappointing 1-1 draw against Hellas Verona on Saturday.
The Old Lady saw their 100% start to the season end with the stalemate and dropped points in the league for the first time this season.
Portuguese international Francisco Conceicao put them ahead in the first half with a neat finish, after beating a Verona defender.
However, the game was marked with controversy moments before the interval with two major decisions going against Juventus.
First, the home side were awarded a penalty kick after the ball struck Joao Mario on the hand, following a long throw into the box.
Nigerian striker Gift Orban dispatched the resulting spot-kick to move the game level.
Minutes later, the Super Eagles star was at the centre of action again when he avoided being sent off for an elbow on Federico Gatti, with the incident reviewed by the Video Assistant Referee.
Igor Tudor, was livid with both decisions and admitted that the referee’s error denied his side a deserved victory.
“There wasn’t a penalty, and there was no red card for elbowing Gatti. If Mr. Rapuano’s whistles had gone in a different direction. I’ve never seen anything like it, an even greater disgrace with the VAR”, Tudor said after the match.
“They come to explain to us how to interpret the facts. They make different decisions: only someone who’s never played football would think that Joao Mario’s move deserved a penalty. The scene changes, not the outcome.
When the second incriminating incident enters the picture. “Do you know what the referee told me at halftime?”, a furious Tudor continued.
“That the yellow card was correct because Orban didn’t charge before hitting and bringing down Gatti. But how can you do that? So if I punch you without charging, is that okay?”
Juventus are still top of the Italian Serie A with 10 points, ahead of other weekend’s fixtures and will hope to shake off Saturday’s result when they battle Atalanta next weekend.
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