Cissé's goal in Juventus-Milan is accompanied by an episode that is expected to cause discussion. At the beginning of the action leading to Milan's goal, De Winter takes the ball from Frenchman Kolo Muani, but during the collision his foot comes into contact with the foot of the black and white striker. Mariani allows the game to continue and a few seconds later the goal comes for the Rossoneri. The VAR check does not change the decision made on the field.
The footage clarifies a first point: there is contact between De Winter and Kolo Muani. This was also highlighted by Luca Marelli during the refereeing analysis on DAZN: the Milan defender's heel touches the toe of the Juventus striker's foot. However, this does not automatically mean that the intervention should be considered a foul and, above all, it is not enough in itself to trigger a review on the monitor.
Why VAR did not intervene for the De Winter-Kolo Muani contact
This is where the VAR protocol comes in. Every goal is automatically reviewed, and among the episodes that can be reviewed are possible fouls committed by the scoring team during the action leading up to the goal. The IFAB regulations also specify that the way in which the attacking team gained possession of the ball can also be reviewed.
So, there is no rule according to which a foul committed “too far from the goal” cannot be controlled. However, distance can help determine the moment when the attacking phase directly linked to the goal begins. This is one of the elements highlighted by Marelli: the contact occurs well before Cissé’s shot and could have been considered too far from the decisive development of the action to justify a review on the field.
Then there is the other element, perhaps even more important. To overturn Mariani's decision, Fabbri would have to find a "clear and obvious error" in VAR. The IFAB protocol states that a decision made on the pitch must stand when the footage does not clearly show that it was wrong. To assess the intensity of a duel, moreover, real speed is preferred over slow motion footage, which can highlight a contact.
Serie A's new referee line-up explains decision
The lack of a referee's call to the monitor must also be seen in the context of the new refereeing line in Serie A 2026/2027. Daniele Orsato had set, before the start of the championship, the objective of returning the referee "to the center of the match", using VAR as an exceptional support and intervening only in the face of clear and obvious errors.
A directive already evident in the first two weeks: in the first 18 Serie A matches there had been no on-field reviews, compared to four recorded at the same stage last season. The principle set for referees is summarized in the formula: "Fouls should be whistled, not contacts."
And it is precisely on this border that the Juventus-Milan episode moves. De Winter hits Kolo Muani's leg, but apparently that contact is not considered sufficient to transform Mariani's failure to whistle into a clear and obvious error. Fabbri, appointed as the VAR of the match together with AVAR Camplone, completes the check without sending the referee to the monitor and Cissé's goal remains valid.
