Istvan Kovac was at the center of AC Milan’s 1-0 Champions League quarter-final tie with Napoli on Wednesday night, and the Romanian referee’s performance was criticized.

Istvan KovacsPhoto: Joaquin Corchero/LiveMedia/Editorial Shutterstock/Profimedia

Istvan Kovac is accused of giving advantage to “Milan” in the match against “Napoli”.

Kovac played one game and received a total of 10 yellow cards: 4 at AC Milan and 6 at Napoli (Andre Zambo Angissa was sent off). Journalist Kyle Bonn (The Sporting News) believes that the referee from Carey made several decisions in favor of the hosts.

“Istvan Kovac is one of the best referees in Europe but he had a miserable night. The arbitration was, in fact, highly biased and biased. Angissa’s second yellow was given lightly, and although that could be argued, overall she gave the hosts the upper hand in style.

It all started when he didn’t give a yellow card to Rafael Leao after destroying the corner flag. He has since refused to caution the Milan players and shown a host of yellows to Napoli players.

I hate to see it. It ruins a great match. He now shows a yellow to Min-Jae Kim, which disqualifies him for a comeback. I apologize, but this is extremely poor refereeing.” – journalist Kyle Bonn wrote on Twitter.

“He won’t even be able to referee Sunday’s game at the Oratorio,” was his message Damiano Er Faina.

“In the 71st and 75th minutes, Zambo Angissa was the protagonist of two fouls against Theo Hernandez that cost him a sending off. If there is no doubt about the first intervention, the second introduces some confusion.

There is no certainty as to the degree of contact, which Theo is obviously doing his best to enhance. Kovac’s decision to award a second yellow card angered Spalletti.

The solution looks somewhat radical, but it is impossible to talk about a mistake. Soon, another blow came for Napoli. Kim Min-jae has received a warning and will miss the second leg.

In the first half, the referee excused Milan players at least twice, taking a different approach to Angissa. First, Leao destroyed the pennant on the edge of the field with an angry gesture, but did not receive a yellow card.

Shortly after that, Krunic blocked Zielinski with a hard foul, and he was forgiven in turn” – Gazzetta dello Sport.

The first match of the quarterfinals of the Champions League

Manchester City – Bayern Munich 3-0

Benfica Lisbon – Inter Milan 0-2

Real Madrid – Chelsea 2-0

Milan – Napoli 1-0.

The return matches will take place on April 18/19.