Serie A drama: Lucca scores but gets benched for breaking Udinese’s penalty rules

However, the victory was overshadowed by bizarre scenes after Lorenzo Lucca scored from the penalty spot in the 32nd minute, only to be immediately substituted.

The controversy arose when Lucca took the penalty despite Florian Thauvin being the designated taker. Ignoring his teammates and his coach’s instructions from the touchline, Lucca stepped up, converted the spot-kick flawlessly, and put Udinese ahead.

But instead of celebrating, his teammates showed no reaction to the goal, and coach Gabriele Cioffi wasted no time in pulling him from the game.

"Thauvin is in charge of penalty kicks. Lucca took it away from him, so I substituted him. But he took a great shot, which is the most important thing," Cioffi said after the match.

Slovenian internationals Jaka Bijol and Sandi Lovrić both started the game for Udinese, who now sit tenth in Serie A. Their next fixture sees them host Parma, followed by a tough away match against an in-form Lazio.

As for Lucca, this was his 12th goal of the season, and his 10th in Serie A, placing him fourth in the league’s top scorer rankings.

Lorenzo Lucca nie był wyznaczony do strzelania rzutów karnych, ale uparł się i zabrał piłkę.

Karnego wykorzystał, a zaraz potem Kosta Runjaić zdjął go z boiska. Lucca to najlepszy strzelec Udinese, ale skoro nie umie się zachować...pic.twitter.com/YTCHnTQJJg

— Wilku (@Wilku_ASR) February 21, 2025