MILAN - Serie A side Genoa have accused referees of protecting the interests of the league's biggest sides after a 1-1 draw with Fiorentina that again shone the spotlight on the officials of Italy's top flight.
Normally calm and composed, Genoa coach Giampiero Gasperini, shown in a file picture, lost his cool after the game with Fiorentina, saying it was "a shame about the refereeing decisions"
Days after Napoli moved up to third place with a 2-1 win over Genoa thanks to two controversial goals by Argentinian striker Gonzalo Higuain, Genoa club president Enrico Preziosi lashed out.
Speaking to Sky Sport after the game, he called for a stop to the decisions which, he suggested, promotes an established league order to the detriment of smaller clubs like Genoa.
"These refereeing errors count, because there are interests and league standings to respect," Preziosi told Sky Sport following 10-man Genoa's 1-1 draw at home to Fiorentina.
"In football it's not always the team that plays the best football that wins, but the subject of refereeing errors can't just be swept aside.
"When these decisions happen to Genoa, they're played down. But because we end up drawing or losing games we should be winning, team morale goes out the window.
"There are games we should have won recently that we didn't because of refereeing errors."
Genoa, along with city rivals Sampdoria, were one of the form teams in the run-up to the Christmas break, but have yet to win in 2015.
Indeed, hardline fans of the Ligurian coast club, as well as the club's directors, did not enter the stadium until 10 minutes after kick-off in protest at recent refereeing decisions that went against them.
Genoa broke the deadlock on 14 minutes when Stefano Sturaro's shot hit the inside of the far post and came off the back of goalkeeper Ciprian Tatarusanu's head.
The conspiracy theorists' were given food for thought shortly after the half-hour when referee Nicola Rizzoli was forced out after pulling up with a suspected calf strain.
He was replaced by Marco Di Bello and took over goal-line duties instead.
Fiorentina levelled 10 minutes after the restart when Gonzalo Rodriguez flicked a corner past Mattia Perin at the back post, although Fiorentina striker Khouma Babacar looked offside.
Genoa's chances of snatching their first win of the year were compromised when Nicolas Burdisso was shown a second yellow card for a foul on Matias Fernandez, which many pundits later claimed was harsh.
Genoa striker Diego Perotti later complained: "These decisions are always against us. Today we conceded a goal that was offside and a red card that shouldn't have been given."
Normally calm and composed, Genoa coach Giampiero Gasperini lost his cool after the game, telling Mediaset: "We had a great game and really deserved the three points.
"It's really a shame about the refereeing decisions, like the goal that was offside. We're putting in some great performances... but enough is enough, all this is stopping us from being much higher up in the table."
Early this season Italian referee Gianluca Rocchi hit back at claims he favoured Juventus in a controversial 3-2 win over Serie A rivals Roma, but admitted he could have handled the bad-tempered match differently.
"When I referee a Juventus game, I treat them as I would any other team," Rocchi said on the television show Il Processo del Lunedi.
"My aim is always to officiate in the fairest manner possible."
However Rocchi's officiating is the first of many refereeing performances to have come under scrutiny in Serie A this season, increasing calls for the introduction of technology.