Inter crushes Monza 4-1, Napoli beats Genoa 2-0 amid controversy

Inter Milan began their title defense with a dominant 4-1 victory over Monza at San Siro. Meanwhile, Napoli secured a 2-0 win against Genoa, but the match was overshadowed by a significant refereeing controversy.

“

Genoa, this stadium, these players, this staff, this coach deserve respect.

Genoa's Chief Football Officer Diego Lopez and head coach Daniele De Rossi voiced strong criticism of the officiating. Lopez stated that Genoa, its stadium, players, and staff deserve respect, and that "things happened that are not within our control and that we judge as not normal." He specifically pointed to a challenge on Vasquez that led to Napoli's first goal, questioning the referee's decision.

“

What I saw and what we all saw is what happened.

De Rossi echoed these sentiments, calling the incident "one of the ugliest things that has happened to me since I started playing football." He argued that the foul was evident and that "not a person in the world who has played, refereed, or watched football" would have considered it a legal play. He also mentioned a prior conversation with referee Orsato about collaboration but expressed deep disappointment with the evening's events.

“

The Genoa deserves respect, it is the most important message we must send today.

In other news from the match, Inter coach Cristian Chivu explained his decision to field Lautaro Martinez from the start. Despite the striker having less than two weeks of training, Chivu stated that he wanted to manage Martinez, who is the league's top scorer and Inter's third all-time leading scorer, understanding that "he doesn't need to insist, nobody should." The coach also acknowledged Monza's efforts.

“

I think that this time it is quite evident. Last year we were here discussing a penalty at the end of the match, we waited for Open Bar to understand if it was a penalty or not. It was something completely different, there was a touch, there was a brush, it was very different from this year.