Why VAR Disallowed Chukwueze’s Two Goals Against Sassuolo

The Nigerian forward was the best AC Milan player on the night of an entertaining 3-3 draw with Sassuolo in Sunday’s Serie A game.

Chukwueze returned to the starting lineup after spending more than 70 minutes on the bench in AC Milan’s disappointing 1-0 Europa League loss to AS Roma at the San Siro on Thursday.

Why was Samuel Chukwueze denied two goals against Sassuolo?

Chukwueze scored two goals against relegation-threatened Sassuolo but both of them were denied by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR). The Nigerian international has bagged one goal and two assists so far for the Rossoneri this season.

His first attempt was when he headed the ball into the far corner from a cross but the offside flag went up. VAR confirmed the call due to the player’s shoulder leaning slightly beyond the last defender which was easily one of the tightest calls in Serie A history.

The Super Eagles winger also netted a goal in the 63rd minute as he scored an immaculate outside-of-the-boot shot but the VAR chalked it off. A frustrated Samuel Chukwueze was replaced with Christian Pulisic.

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Stefan Pioli has praised the struggling winger

The 24-year-old winger joined AC Milan last summer in a deal worth  €20m plus an additional €8m in bonuses. He has struggled to hit the ground running since his arrival in Italy and was unable to find the back of the net in his first six months.

AC Milan manager Stefan Pioli heaped praise on the struggling star after an impressive performance in Milan’s 3-0 win over Lecce.

“His mind has changed. Now he has confidence, he’s positive, he believes in what he does. He understands what the team has to do on the pitch. He’s a quality player. I’m very happy for him because he’s been through a difficult time. He believed in it and worked hard, which pleases me, the club, and the team“