Thirty-three years old from the Udine Section, Luca Zufferli – designated for Verona-Inter, a second tier match, is one of the referees who made his debut in Serie A during the last football season. He joined the AIA in 2006, from July 2021 is present in the CAN staff. His debut in the top championship took place on 12 February 2023 during the Bologna-Monza match but he had little to convince and since then he has been used very little in Serie A. In fact, it was only his sixth appearance of the season. From this season’s statistics, a certain predisposition to let the game run emerges: in fact, the average number of fouls called per game is just 21.40, of which 0.70 per tackle. The data on penalty kicks awarded is also very low (0.20 on average, just one in the entire championship, in Lecce-Frosinone and it had gone in favor of the Ciociari), as are the numbers on cards drawn: 13 yellow cards (average 2 ,60) and no expulsion. Let’s see how he fared yesterday at Bentegodi in the chance given to him by referee Rocchi.
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Zufferli’s history with Verona and Inter
It was the first crossbreed ever between the Friulian whistle and the team coached by Simone Inzaghi, as well as for that of Marco Baroni.
The referee cautioned two players
Assisted by assistants Bottegoni and Lombardo, with fourth man Camplone, Valeri at the Var and Miele at the Avarthe referee cautioned two players: Cabal (H), Barella (I)
Verona-Inter, the slow-motion cases
These are the dubious episodes. In the 7th minute Zufferli stops a promising Nerazzurri action due to a foul by Frattesi, Thuram complains that he was ready to attack the Gialloblù defense. Arnautovic’s first goal in the 10th minute. Coppola complains about a slight holding back by the Austrian in an attempt to take a position: the melee is mutual and there is no reason to intervene, Zufferli lets it go and the VAR confirms the pitch decision with silence. In the 13th minute a crazy ball splashes into Inter’s penalty area and some Verona players try to ask for a penalty kick due to Thuram’s touch: the ball is unexpected and hits the Frenchman’s elbow after the rebound, the VAR sees it and rightly decides not to intervene. In the 17th minute Verona equalized through Noslin: the Verona striker started with the right timing and was in a regular position when his teammate passed.
At half an hour the first yellow card of the match: Cabal booked for a foul on Thuram. In the 41st minute Suslov shoots from outside the area and the ball is deflected by Bisseck. Verona asks for a penalty, but the Dane has his hands firmly attached to his body and behind his back. Zufferli makes broad gestures, underlining that it is not a penalty. In the 45th minute Thuram goes down in the area pushed by , it seems like a penalty but the referee lets it go and the VAR cannot intervene. Immediately afterwards Arnautovic scored the 2-2 goal on an assist from Frattesi. VAR checks the position of the Inter attacker who is kept in play by Vinagre’s foot. The goal is legal and is validated. In the second half in the 15th minute Barella was yellow for a clear foul on Mitrovic. In the 76th minute Carlos Augusto goes in search of the ball and accentuates the fall, but Tavsan had stopped in time: Zufferli whistles a free kick for Inter following a signal from assistant Bottegoni. Wrong decision. In the 90th minute Sanchez scored a suspected offside goal, the VAR confirmed the Chilean’s irregular position following Asllani’s assist and the referee annulled the goal. It ends 2-2 Verona-Inter.
