In the aftermath of Lazio’s 1-0 defeat to Juventus, marked by Gila’s unfortunate own goal, the Roman club’s sporting director Angelo Fabiani has unleashed a scathing critique of VAR implementation. Fabiani’s frustration stems from several contentious incidents during the match, particularly two involving Juventus midfielder Douglas Luiz.
Fabiani expressed his outrage, stating, “There’s no consistency in judgment. What’s the point of this VAR? We should start a petition to abolish it.” His anger was primarily directed at two incidents: an alleged punch by Douglas Luiz on Patric, which went unpunished, and a dangerous tackle on Nicolò Rovella that only resulted in a yellow card.
The Lazio director didn’t hold back in his criticism: “Douglas Luiz punches Patric just before the goal. But VAR doesn’t intervene, doesn’t see it. Yet the images are there. The same Douglas Luiz goes in with a studs-up challenge on Rovella, and again VAR doesn’t intervene.”
Fabiani’s frustration extended beyond these specific incidents to the overall implementation of VAR in Italian football. “If this is VAR, let’s start a petition, a class action to abolish VAR. It’s causing unspeakable damage, there’s no uniformity,” he declared. “Here we have a punch, there’s violent conduct, and it should be a red card. It’s incomprehensible why violent conduct isn’t punished. We feel like we’re being mocked, the players are frustrated.”
The sporting director called for action from the head of Italian referees, Gianluca Rocchi: “Rocchi needs to sort out these situations, for the football movement, not just for Lazio. We’re sportsmen, Juventus doesn’t need these incidents to win the game.”
Fabiani also suggested that VAR officials might need a break: “If I make a mistake in the transfer market, my president fires me. These gentlemen at VAR who make decisions need to be stopped; evidently, they’re not up to doing this job. Maybe these gentlemen should take a two-month break.”
When asked about the possibility of coach-initiated VAR reviews, Fabiani dismissed the idea: “Confusion upon confusion. Because it would trigger a mechanism where a game lasts two, three, four hours. We must leave discretion to the referee on the field; when he judges on the field, he often gets it right.”
In conclusion, Fabiani emphasized that his criticism was aimed at improving the overall football system: “I’m speaking for the football system. The sanctions we’ve received haven’t happened to other teams. This is a system that no longer works. Let these gentlemen rest a bit; they must be tired. I repeat: congratulations to Juventus, let that be clear.”
