Was he offside?
EH-rah een fwoh-ree-JOH-koh.
After the referee raises the flag for offside, especially when it is disputed. Offside decisions are among the most argued topics at Italian stadiums.
Era is the imperfect of essere (was). In fuorigioco means offside — literally 'outside of the game'. The fuorigioco rule is consistently one of the most debated in Italian football, particularly since VAR introduced millimetre-level scrutiny.
Quella era posizione regolare!
That was a legal position!
Protesting that a player was NOT offside.
Il VAR conferma il fuorigioco.
VAR confirms the offside.
Acknowledging a VAR decision.
Impossibile — era con il tallone!
Impossible — it was by a heel!
Arguing about marginal offside calls.
VAR (Video Assistant Referee) was introduced to Serie A in 2017-18. Its use has sparked intense debate in Italy — supporters call it both 'la tecnologia' when it favours their team and 'uno scandalo' when it does not. The slow-motion offside checks are now a ritual part of Italian football watching.