The limit seems to have been reached. In a season marked by recurring controversies and controversial decisions, the topic of referees and VAR has become central to the debate in Italian football. From Inter down, no Serie A team says they are fully satisfied, and discontent is rippling through the league table. The latest case concerns Naples, coming off the defeat in Bergamo which risks complicating the race for the Champions League and which matured in a match heavily influenced by the decisions of referee Chiffi, subsequently stopped by the referee designator.
A situation that pushed the blue president Aurelio De Laurentiis to contact directly Gabriele Gravina to ask for clarifications and above all concrete interventions. According to what Pino Taormina reported on The morning, De Laurentiis would be ready to promote a structural reform of the VAR system.
The idea on the table is the introduction of the call to the monitor also in Serie A, on the model already adopted in Serie CA mechanism that would allow teams to request a review of incidents deemed decisive, inviting the referee to review the action directly on the monitor. A proposal that opens up new and inevitably divisive scenarios, especially when compared to the economic, media, and political dimensions of the Serie A.
The meeting, however, is set to become official. A meeting between presidents, coaches, captains, and refereeing officials is already scheduled to discuss adjustments for next season. On-call VAR isn't the only option: work is also underway on a possible revision of the protocol, with the aim of making it simpler, more understandable, and more transparent for clubs and fans.
Napoli is not an isolated case. AC Milan has formally protested to the AIA leadership, Juventus after the Kalulu-Inter incident, and Roma on several occasions. For once, the front is united: the widespread feeling is that things can't go on like this and that the system needs a profound change of pace before the distrust becomes irreversible.
It seems to me that the problem of referees and V4r is very complex but I don't think calling the monitor solves everything. The presidents talk but then don't intervene. The referee is human and often makes mistakes but the protocol is also confusing. Clear rules and, above all, real controls are needed in Italian football.