“I’ve always said it to everyone without any problems and I repeat it: if someone doesn’t believe in our good faith, I’ll leave tomorrow morning.” It is the harsh stance of the referee designator Gianluca Rocchiwhich a Open Var on Dazn he commented on the letter of protest that the Lazio sent to the Serie A League after the controversy over Udinese’s equaliser. “Our goal – he said – is to make as few mistakes as possible, then we make some, and if you were with me for a few weekends you would see how pissed off I get”.
Referees, Rocchi chooses Massa for Lazio-Napoli
30 December 2025
Davis’ goal ‘was good’
According to Rocchi, Davis’ equalizer in Udinese-Lazio is “a good goal”. “I say this as a person who likes football. You can’t cancel goals like this, especially when someone touches the ball with a closed arm or in any case in a totally fortuitous way like this.”
There is an open clash between Lazio and the referees
by Giulio Cardone
December 29, 2025
The concept of immediacy
What needs to be clarified is the issue of the immediacy with which the goal arrives after the touch of the hand by the Friulian attacker: “Here as a referee I say that it is a rule that certainly needs to be clarified and I take responsibility for it, because then we have to give people answers that are as objective as possible. It is clear that at the moment this adverb ‘immediately’ puts us in a little difficulty and today I cannot tell the boys that they have made a mistake, because if I go and see the immediacy in this there is no case. The player recovers the ball with a touch of the hand, yes, but he does four dribbles in front of him, so if you ask me if there is immediacy, this can never be. At the same time I say, very sincerely, that if I have to understand from the outside, and I’m not a referee, I struggle with what the correct decision is.”
“Svilar-Ostigard era rigore”
“For us, this is a penalty for Genoa” adds Rocchi, “because it is true that Svilar looks for the ball, but is late, finding Ostigard’s face. According to the regulation, it is punishable with a penalty”. On the clash between Paleari and Idrissi in Turin-Cagliari: “For us this is a penalty kick and a yellow card. The image from behind the goalkeeper is the most important one but it is not considered by the VAR and is not proposed to the referee. That image raises doubts about the fact that there is a double intervention, first with the hand and then with the leg which must not be in that position and only serves to create opposition on the attacker launched towards the net.”
