Super Eagles winger Samuel Chukwueze was denied his first brace in the Italian Serie A courtesy of a new off-side rules.
During AC Milan’s 3-3 draw against Sassuolo, the Nigerian scored two goals, but both were ruled out for offside through the semi-automatic system used by VAR.
In the first half, Milan thought they had taken the lead after Chukwueze headed the ball into the far corner from a cross. However, the offside flag went up, and VAR confirmed the call despite its marginal nature.
Upon review, it was discovered that the winger was called offside due to his shoulder leaning slightly beyond the last defender, which was hard to tell from the angle.
In the second half, Chukwueze scored with an exceptional outside-of-the-boot shot, which hit the far post after a run behind the defense. But, again, VAR came to the rescue of Sassuolo, ruling the goal out for offside. Even though the semi-automatic system should ensure the right decision, it was difficult to see what they saw in the booth.
In the end, Luka Jovic and Noah Okafor scored to earn AC Milan a 3-3 draw, but the stats and moments like the ones above show how close they came to a famous comeback win.