VAR supervisor Andrea Gervasoni has taken similar action for the same reasons, and the investigation is ​looking into incidents during last season’s Serie A ​campaign.

“This choice, painful, difficult but shared with my family, ⁠is intended to allow the legal proceedings to run ​their course properly, from which I am sure I will ​come out unscathed and stronger than before,” Rocchi’s statement to Italy’s referees’ association (AIA) said.

According to Italian media reports, Rocchi is accused of interfering ​with VAR protocols along with selecting referees preferable to ​Inter Milan.

“We are learning everything from the media, so we are stunned ‌by ⁠the declarations,” Inter President Giuseppe Marotta told Sky Sports before his side’s game at Torino on Sunday.

“We do not have referees that we favour or are unfavourable towards, we ​are confident ​that we acted ⁠entirely fairly, which should reassure everyone.

“We are safe in the knowledge that Inter are ​not involved in this situation and will not ​be ⁠involved in the future.”

The news has sparked fears in Italy of another crisis, similar to the Calciopoli match-fixing scandal which ⁠saw ​Juventus stripped of the 2004-05 Serie ​A title and relegated to Serie B, with AC Milan, Fiorentina, Lazio and ​Reggina also involved.

-Reuters

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In an interview with Italian newspaper La Gazzetta dello Sport, Osimhen described the turning point as a TikTok video posted by Napoli in September 2023 that appeared to mock him for missing a penalty.

“After Napoli posted that video on TikTok, something broke forever,” he said.

The video showed Osimhen appealing for a penalty with a squeaky, sped-up voice dubbed over the footage, followed by the clip of his missed spot kick. Although the post was quickly deleted after his representatives labelled it offensive and reportedly considered legal action, the damage, according to the striker, had already been done.

Osimhen said the incident triggered a wave of toxic online reactions, including racist insults directed at him. He also recounted how some supporters confronted him at his residence, demanding explanations over the controversy.

For the 2023 African Footballer of the Year, the episode marked a decisive rupture in trust.

“I’m not a puppet,” he said, describing a period in which he felt humiliated and sidelined despite his contributions to the club.

Beyond the social media row, Osimhen suggested that tensions over his future compounded the fallout. He indicated that there had been an understanding with Napoli president Aurelio De Laurentiis regarding a potential departure in a future transfer window, but he felt the club did not honour that understanding.

“They treated me like a dog,” he said, adding that decisions were being made about his career without what he considered basic respect.

By late summer 2024, relations had deteriorated sharply. Reports indicated that Napoli excluded him from their Serie A squad list amid transfer uncertainty. The impasse eventually led to a season-long loan move to Galatasaray, bringing the standoff to a temporary close.

Osimhen was instrumental in Napoli’s historic 2022–23 Serie A title triumph, finishing as the league’s top scorer with 26 goals and becoming one of the defining figures of that championship campaign.

His departure, therefore, marked a dramatic reversal — from talismanic hero to sidelined star.

Now rebuilding his career in Turkey, Osimhen said his decision to speak publicly was driven by a desire to reclaim his narrative.

He explained that he had remained silent for months out of respect for Napoli supporters, but felt compelled to address the circumstances that led to his exit.

The episode underscores how a combination of social media missteps, fan reaction and unresolved transfer negotiations can unravel even the most successful partnerships in modern football.

For Osimhen, a relationship that once delivered a Scudetto ended not with celebration, but with controversy.

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The midfielder’s arrival was confirmed by newly-appointed Milan coach Massimiliano Allegri earlier this month.

“Very happy to be here to start a new chapter in my career,” said Modric, who turns 40 in September, in an Instagram video shared by Milan.

Milan said Modric will wear the number 14 shirt, which he previously wore during his four years at English side Tottenham Hotspur to honour Dutch great Johan Cruyff.

“It’s an immense honour for them to compare me to (Cruyff)… I wore the no. 14 at Tottenham in honour of him, and because the no. 10 wasn’t available,” Modric had said after winning the Ballon d’Or award in 2018.

Modric, regarded as one of the greatest midfielders of all time, announced in May that he would leave Real after the Club World Cup. He has made 597 appearances for the Spanish club, winning 28 trophies including four LaLiga and six Champions League titles.

He played his last game for Real on Wednesday, coming on as a second-half substitute during a 4-0 loss to Paris St Germain in the Club World Cup semi-finals.

“It’s a bitter end… he’s a legend of world football and of Real Madrid. He’ll be remembered for many more good things than for the 25 minutes he played today,” Real Madrid manager Xabi Alonso said after the match.

Modric, considered Croatia’s greatest player of all time, has represented the country a record 188 times, scoring 28 goals. He won the Golden Ball at World Cup 2018, where he led Croatia to the final for the first time.

He won the Ballon d’Or in December that year, becoming the first player other than Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo to win the prestigious annual award since 2007.

Modric’s arrival reinforces a Milan midfield that also features Youssouf Fofana, Yunus Musah and Ruben Loftus-Cheek, with Samuele Ricci joining from Torino earlier this month.

Milan, who failed to qualify for a European competition after finishing eighth in the Italian top-flight league last season, begin their Serie A campaign against newly-promoted Cremonese on August 23.

-Reuters

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Napoli won their fourth “Scudetto” on Friday with a 2-0 home victory over Cagliari, edging out Inter Milan by one point in a nail-biting end to the season.

The team, captained by Italian international Giovanni Di Lorenzo, arrived for their papal audience a day after a triumphant open-top bus parade through central Naples.

“The press says I am an AS Roma fan, but you are welcome! This is what the press says. Not everything you read in the press is true,” the pope said, according to a transcript.

Leo, the first pope to come from the U.S., follows and practices sports, including tennis. People who know him have described him to the media as an AS Roma supporter.

Napoli chairman Aurelio De Laurentiis gave him a blue Napoli jersey signed by players, bearing the number 10 and his name in Italian, “Papa Leone XIV”.

“You are a number 10, so you are a great striker”, De Laurentiis said. Leo replied with a chuckle and a simple “thank you”.

Coach Antonio Conte, whom De Laurentiis introduced as “deeply Catholic”, knelt down and kissed the pope’s hand, before Leo told him he had seen him many times on TV.

In a short speech, the pontiff stressed the importance of team spirit and collaboration, and sport’s educational value, especially for young people.

Winning comes “at the end of a long journey, where what matters the most is not a one-time exploit or the extraordinary performance of one champion”, he said.

“The championship is won by the team, and when I say ‘team’ I mean the players, the coach with the whole squad, and the club,” he added.

Leo ended his remarks giving his blessings to players and club officials, and offering congratulations, also on behalf of his personal cook.

“She is from Naples and she says: best wishes! She would like to be here too, Mrs Rosa, (she is) a big fan”, the pope said.

-Reuters

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Sulemana sealed the three points for Atalanta in the 76th minute, scoring with a low strike from just outside the area, after Roma midfielder Bryan Cristante cancelled out an early opener by Ademola Lookman.

Atalanta, who fell behind in the title race, sit third in the standings on 71 points and have a seven-point cushion over fourth-placed Juventus and Lazio in fifth with two games left to play.

Roma, who failed to capitalise on Lazio and Juventus dropping points in a 1-1 stalemate on Saturday, are sixth with 63 points.

Atalanta snapped the visitors’ impressive unbeaten league run of 19 games, with Claudio Ranieri’s side previously having been defeated mid-December at Como.

Things started off brightly for Atalanta as Lookman stroked in past Roma goalkeeper Mile Svilar to put them in front after nine minutes.

Charles De Ketelaere dribbled past the Roma defence to set the Nigerian up with a precise low cross inside the box and the striker controlled the ball to score inside the right post.

It was Atalanta’s 100th goal this season across all competitions.

De Ketelaere had two good chances to double the advantage but Roma midfielder Cristante levelled for the visitors instead, netting with a flicked header after the half-hour mark.

Things slowed down significantly after a lively first half until Roma were awarded a penalty after an hour of play, following a clash between Atalanta’s Mario Pasalic and Manu Kone.

The referee, however, overturned his decision after consulting VAR.

Sulemana eventually restored the lead for Atalanta in the 76th minute, scoring with a low strike from just outside the area — a goal that stood after a VAR check for a potential offside.

Roma host AC Milan next weekend before visiting mid-table Torino in their bid to qualify for Europe’s elite club competition for the first time since the 2018-19 campaign.

Atalanta travel to Genoa on Sunday before welcoming lowly Parma in their final fixture.

-Reuters

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The long penance of the French international (91 caps), one of the biggest stars in the world of football, is coming to an end and the midfielder will be able to draw a line under what seems like a slow descent into hell.

Suspended for four years after testing positive for non-endogenous testosterone metabolites (DHEA) at the end of the Juventus-Udinese match on August 20, 2023, Pogba saw his sanction reduced to 18 months by the Court of Arbitration for Sport, the CAS considering that the “ingestion” of the substance “was not intentional and resulted from taking a food supplement prescribed by a doctor in Florida.”

Based in Miami, the native of Lagny-sur-Marne, east of Paris, is now ready to bounce back, his Instagram account still very popular (62.7 million followers) multiplies photos of intensive training, with a few fashion shots, another of his passions. Sign of his return, at least in the media, while waiting to be able to resume the thread of his prestigious career.

His ultimate dream remains the 2026 World Cup, but he would first have to find a club. La Pioche (32 years old on March 15), whose contract with Juventus Turin that ran until 2026 was terminated last November, “is training 1000%, he is in good spirits, he has received many offers”, assures a member of his entourage. He is also in regular contact with the coach of the Blues Didier Deschamps, “one of his advisors for sporting decisions”, according to one of his close friends.

But who could be interested in a player whose last match was on September 3, 2023 with Juve?

During one of his rare public appearances, on AmineMaTue’s Twitch channel in January, he explained that he had received ” proposals, not very interesting stuff”, such as “going to play in Russia, but that’s not the goal “.

A contract, he admitted, ” doesn’t depend on me, but on many other things.”

– Strength of character –

David Beckham’s Inter Miami could be a solution. Pogba lives in the Florida metropolis where he bought a house, he was in the stands for the Roses’ first MLS match of the season, against New York City (2-2), on February 23, and he is fine-tuning his fitness with the fitness coach of Lionel Messi, the team’s star.

Olympique de Marseille also sounded him out, and football director Medhi Benatia played with him at Juventus. But OM did not want to take the risk of signing a player whose fitness is surrounded by too many questions.

In any case, morale seems to be at its highest, with Pogba having always maintained his legendary strength of character even in the worst of storms.

“I ‘ve had a difficult year, so I have this rage, this desire to play football and enjoy it until the end of my career,” he said on Al Jazeera channel, just before his positive test.

Also badly affected by the kidnapping case of which he was the victim in 2022, he can now also try to forget this sordid episode with the end of the trial of his attackers at the end of 2024, his brother Mathias and five of his childhood friends having been sentenced to terms of up to eight years in prison.

“I can finally turn the page on this extremely difficult period. This conclusion is an opportunity for everyone to focus on the future. Now that the judgment has been delivered, I can fully concentrate on my return to professional football ,” he wrote to AFP after the verdict.

” That he can rediscover the pleasure of playing on the pitch, that’s all I wish for him because humanly he’s really a good person ,” said Didier Deschamps in 2024.

–Le360/AFP

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Gian Piero Gasperini’s side moved to 58 points, three behind leaders Inter Milan, while Juventus remain fourth on 52.

It was Juventus’ first home defeat in Serie A by a margin of at least four goals since 1967, leaving frustrated fans at the Allianz Stadium jeering their team after a night to forget.

“This is football. You go from victories to defeats, you have to consider the whole journey, Juve were coming from a series of victories,” Gasperini told DAZN.

“It was an unimaginable result for many, but it was the perfect performance from us.”

Both teams had chances to break the deadlock early on, as Khephren Thuram shot just over the crossbar with the hosts’ clearest chance after eight minutes and Atalanta’s Davide Zappacosta fired wide a minute later.

But it was Serie A’s top scorer Mateo Retegui who opened the scoring with a clinical penalty for his 22nd league goal this season following a handball by Weston McKennie just before the half-hour mark.

Atalanta took control of proceedings and could have increased their lead before the break when Ademola Lookman’s effort hit the woodwork before home goalkeeper Michele Di Gregorio pulled off a series of vital saves.

Marten de Roon pounced on a rebound off Juve defender Lloyd Kelly to fire the ball into an open net early in the second half, before Davide Zappacosta made it 3-0, scoring from close-range after a brilliant back-heel pass from Sead Kolasinac in the 66th minute.

Juventus substitute Dusan Vlahovic slipped and lost possession to Lookman, who sealed the rout, netting 13 minutes from time after his shot took a deflection off a Juventus defender before beating Di Gregorio.

“I think today we were up against a team that was eager to capitalise on our mistakes,” Juventus coach Thiago Motta said.

“We gave players like Lookman the chance to take advantage of counter attacks. After a defeat like that, we are certainly sad and disappointed. We will no longer be talking about fighting for the title.”

-Reuters

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A month ago the battle for the Scudetto looked like becoming a two-horse race between Napoli and Inter Milan but indifferent results for both sides have allowed Atalanta to narrow the gap.

Atalanta now have 54 points, three behind leaders Inter and two off Napoli with 12 rounds of matches remaining.

With Napoli suffering a surprise 2-1 loss at Como earlier on Sunday and Inter losing twice in four matches, Atalanta had the chance to keep the pressure on and dominated from the start.

The visitors broke the deadlock in the 27th minute with an own goal after Davide Zappacosta delivered a cross from the edge of the box which deflected off Empoli striker Emmanuel Gyasi and looped into the corner of the net.

Atalanta then began to dominate the match with Mateo Retegui doubling the lead six minutes later before Lookman made it 3-0 in the 43rd when he latched onto a through ball, deftly rounded goalkeeper Marco Silvestri and put the ball into the empty net.

Ten minutes after the break Lookman got his second, latching onto a through ball from Marten de Roon, evading the offside trap and firing an angled shot past the keeper after a step-over. Zappacosta completed the rout in the 74th minute.

Zappacosta was hesitant to talk about the title race.

“There’s no point right now thinking of long-term objectives. We have to take it one game at a time,” he told DAZN.

“A victory that gives us fuel and morale after a difficult last week,” he added, referring to being knocked out of the Champions League with a 3-1 defeat by Club Brugge on Tuesday.

LOOKMAN RESPONDS

Lookman’s performance showed the right response following his recent spat with coach Gian Piero Gasperini, who said the Nigeria striker was one of the worst penalty takers he had ever seen after he missed one against Brugge.

Gasperini later downplayed the comment saying he never intended to offend the 27-year-old, who also scored against the Belgian side after coming on at halftime.

Against Empoli, Lookman caused chaos for the home defence, playing a pivotal role in the build-up to Retegui’s goal, and was a stand-out performer in Atalanta’s dominant victory.

Sky Sport Italia asked if he had forgotten Gasperini’s criticism, but Lookman was reluctant to comment.

After a shrug and a glance around, he replied, “Finished?” before shifting the discussion to Atalanta’s display.

“The team won 5-0 today, we put in a good performance, everyone was at a high level and we showed quality,” he said.

The result leaves Empoli third-bottom in the standings on 21 points, two points below the safety zone.

-Reuters

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Milan celebrated the club’s foundation with greats such as former strikers Marco van Basten and Filippo Inzaghi, who entered the pitch holding their commemorative plates after being inducted into the club’s Hall of Fame before the game.

However, Paulo Fonseca’s side were booed at the end of the match after their performance failed to match the occasion.

Wearing new retro kits created for the anniversary, Milan had the upper hand from the start but created mostly half-chances in the opening period.

The hosts were fortunate to escape without conceding a penalty when teenage forward Mattia Liberali’s tackle on Genoa midfielder Fabio Miretti went unpunished.

Milan continued to create opportunities after the interval but without being able to break the deadlock.

Halftime substitute Alvaro Morata dribbled through the Genoa defence before firing over in the 76th minute and then hit the bar three minutes later to the dismay of the fans.

The home side had 22 goal attempts but only four on target.

Milan, who were celebrating the anniversary of their founding on Dec. 16 1899, remain eighth in the standings on 23 points from 15 games, eight points adrift of the top four.

After extending their Champions League winning streak to four games with a late 2-1 home victory over Red Star Belgrade on Wednesday, Milan are now winless in four of their last five Serie A games.

Patrick Vieira’s Genoa, meanwhile, extended their unbeaten run to six matches and sit 13th with 16 points, two points above the relegation zone.

Bologna beat fourth-placed visitors Fiorentina 1-0 earlier on Sunday, ending Viola’s winning streak of eight league games, while struggling AS Roma conceded twice in stoppage time to lose 2-0 at lowly Como.

Roma are 12th on 16 points from 16 games, which is the club’s worst record in the three-points-for-a-win era at this stage of a campaign.

-Reuters

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The 31-year-old had a deal with the Serie A club until June 2026 but is banned from playing until March next year after testing positive for DHEA, which boosts testosterone levels, in September 2023.

“The club wishes Paul all the best for his professional future,” Juventus said in a statement.

The former France international had his ban reduced from four years to 18 months by the Court of Arbitration for Sport last month and thanked the Serie A club and the fans for their support.

“My time at Juventus has come to an end. It has been a privilege to wear the Bianconeri shirt and share so many special moments together. I will cherish the memories we have made,” the striker said in a statement. “I look forward to the next chapter of my career and to getting back on the pitch with my next club.”

-Reuters