Roma lost the big meeting against Juventus 1-0 away on Sunday night. The aftermath was largely about a controversial decision at the end of the first half.
Tammy Abraham collapsed in the penalty area. In the same sequence, the ball went to a suspected offside Henrikh Mkhitaryan who chipped the ball over an outrageous Wojciech Szczęsny in the Juventus goal before Abraham could hit the ball in goal – by then, however, the referee had already blown for a penalty. The replay pictures also showed a suspicious hand on Mkhitaryan in the same sequence.
Wild protests erupted among Roma players, but penalties were imposed. Jordan Veretout stepped forward – who missed. After the match, José Mourinho did not want to comment on the situation or the referees’ efforts.
– Giving three minutes of extra time shows the intention. I do not want to comment on the penalty situation. I do not have all the information and I have not seen reruns. I want to isolate myself from that situation and concentrate on everything my team did, Mourinho told Dazn according to Football Italia.
José Mourinho chose instead to pay tribute to Roma and the players’ efforts, despite the loss.
– I saw a good Roma today. That’s what I told my players in the locker room. I saw courage, confidence and faith. A loss is always a loss, but if I look at the project, the loss means development for the team over time, says José Mourinho to Dazn.
– I may see it differently than the rest of you, but I saw a team that deserved to win lose. Such is football.
According to Gazzetta dello Sport, referee Daniele Orsato at half time has explained to the Roma players why he chose to blow a penalty.
– You do not give an advantage when there is a penalty. Then you get the punishment and blame me for missing, Orsato is said to have said according to Gazzetta dello Sport.
After eight rounds played, Roma is in fourth place in Serie A with 15 recorded points.
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