Luciano Spalletti fumed over the referee’s decision to award a penalty deep into stoppage time as Inter were held to a dramatic last-gasp 3-3 Serie A draw at Fiorentina.
Danilo D’Ambrosio was deemed to have handled the ball in the sixth of seven additional minutes on Sunday, with Fiorentina’s Jordan Veretout converting the spot-kick after a five-minute VAR check.
Referee Rosario Abisso consulted the video review system having pointed to the spot initially and he stuck with his original decision, despite the ball appearing to strike D’Ambrosio’s chest.
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The result, which saw Inter squander a 3-1 lead in the second half in Florence, left Spalletti’s side just two points above city rivals AC Milan in third position.
And Inter head coach Spalletti raged post-match, telling Sky Sport Italia: “It’s clear. It’s his chest. There is no argument here. There is no doubt here. It’s his chest. We saw clearly. Everyone saw the VAR from the touchline, everyone saw it. It was his chest.
“The first penalty he stuck his arm up and waved it around with nobody bothering him. The second, it was clearly his chest. It never even grazed his arm. Never.
“Now people are going to go ‘oh they’re sending Spalletti away and getting someone else in’, these results are decisive, they make a difference. These are fundamental results for our objectives in an entire season.
“I didn’t talk to the referee afterwards, because what could he possibly tell me? That it hit his arm when it clearly didn’t? There are no ifs and buts here, it’s clear. It is obvious.
“It is in front of our eyes. There are no doubts, there’s no maybe, no possibly, no potentially, no perhaps. So we go back to the last time we played Fiorentina, with the famous fingertips that moved on VAR. This is an important instrument that referees can use to see things properly.”
Inter captain and goalkeeper Sami Handanovic added: “We’re angry, everyone saw what happened at the end: first of all, D’Ambrosio was fouled by Federico Chiesa, and then the ball didn’t even touch his hand. It’s clear for all to see.”