Second leg of Internazionale - Barcelona, semifinal of 2024-25 UEFA Champions League.
21:00 CET - Milan (Stadio Giuseppe Meazza)
FC INTERNAZIONALE (ITA) - FC BARCELONA (ESP)
Referee: Szymon Marciniak POL
Assistant Referee 1:
Assistant Referee 2: Adam Kupsik POL
Fourth Official: Paweł Raczkowski POL
UEFA Referee Observer: Video Assistant Referee: Dennis Johan Higler NED
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Pol van Boekel NED
UEFA Delegate: Maria Mifsud MLT
It is clear what committee thinks about that situation of Nations League match. Marciniak appointed to follow with VAR from other countries, when this hadn't happened before and he always had his compatriots in the room, Kwiatkowski, Pskit or others. But now at first a Spanish, while today Dutch VARs for Marciniak.
ReplyDeleteThe strange fact is that despite the way of doing things, and the obvious ostracism of committee towards him in recent times, Rosetti cannot go on wihout him. This is paradoxical and makes us understand how in the end very often appointing a referee for a certain type of game is a decision also originated by certain compromises (certainly referees with a different history than the Polish but less experienced and less good, would be seen as not suitable for this match).
So it seems that it is difficult for the commitee to get into the technical matters and say to Marciniak and his Polish entourage: "You must not do it this way", but rather they prefer to act indirectly, changing the nationality of the VAR (and perhaps one could think that they would not say anything directly to Marciniak about all of that...).
But, I'll stop here. It is better not to enter the field of speculation even if the clues look very evident.
Since Pskit was the main VAR in the Nations League QF, UEFA could have just replaced him with another VAR from Poland or another federation. Kwiatkowski theoretically could have remained Marciniaks VAR, we have actually seen it quite often that only Main VAR gets a „punishment“, but in this case UEFA decided differently…
DeleteSorry if this has already been discussed, but I wanted to ask about Danny Makkelie. I have not followed his situation closely in recent months/years so am unsure what has happened.
ReplyDeleteBut I remember watching him in previous seasons as one of the safest pairs of hands in Europe, where almost no game was too big for him. I thought his style was excellent, as was his man management, not to mention his fitness. After his 2020 EL final, I was 100% sure he would go on to UCL final and perhaps even international finals. I enjoyed watching games when he was appointed.
But it seems he is no longer high on the trusted referees. Is it because he didn't have a great WC2022 or Euro 2024 (Italy v Croatia)? Is he in a bad patch of form or is he being punished because of just one or two poor performances? Something else I've missed? Can he recover?
Or... have I got this all wrong and he'll referee PSG-ARS or the final this year. As I say, I have genuinely lost track of his situation :)
DeleteIf it's already been discussed? It's the #1 thing that's always being discussed here (particularly from a few Dutch posters, but others too). Here he is seen as the perfect referee, flawless and second to none, so naturally he deserves every final. It's all a big plot from the evil refereeing bodies to keep him from the biggest games.
DeleteKovacs is appointed in the romanian Super League tomorrow…
ReplyDeleteCongratulations on the UCL final appointment then, impossible to call it undeserved
Deletestill will have an open game in UECL and that is Fiorentina with Betis. Siebert for the game or anybody else?
DeleteQuestion regarding Serie A and B (Chefren): Is there a website where it's possible to see all Serie A and B referee assignments on one page? At least per match day?
ReplyDeletehttps://www.worldfootball.net/referees/ita-serie-a-2024-2025/1/
Deletehttps://www.worldfootball.net/referees/ita-serie-b-2024-2025/1/
Click on the number of games for each referee to read the list of all matches he / she officiated in serie A (first link) and serie B (second link) this season.
There can be some wrong information due to late replacements, but mostly a good overview.
Thanks. Awesome.
DeleteReferee Danny Makkelie Praised for Compassionate Response During Eredivisie Match Between NEC and Willem II
ReplyDeleteWhat happened?
In the 42nd minute of the match on May 3, 2025, NEC players Dirk Proper and Koki Ogawa collided heads, leaving Proper motionless on the pitch. Referee Danny Makkelie acted immediately, calling medical staff onto the field. Players from both teams formed a circle around Proper to give him privacy during treatment. Fortunately, Proper regained consciousness quickly and was carried off the field on a stretcher.
Human empathy
Following the incident, Makkelie noticed that NEC defender Iván Márquez was visibly shaken. Trusting his instincts, the referee offered Márquez a comforting hug. Makkelie later explained, “Sometimes that’s the only right thing to do.”
Social media reactions
Makkelie’s handling of the situation drew praise on social media. One user on X (formerly Twitter) wrote: “Football fans always criticize referees. But in this situation, the ref reacted extremely well and that hug for the NEC player who was in tears after the collision… classy.”
Article: https://www.telegraaf.nl/sport/1604062205/danny-makkelie-na-emotionele-avond-in-nijmegen-ik-gaf-hem-op-dat-moment-een-omhelzing-puur-op-gevoel
Makkelie’s LinkedIn message: https://www.linkedin.com/posts/danny-desmond-makkelie-b1b30154_sterktedirkproper-voetbal-respect-activity-7324796017231503360-VEM9?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_ios&rcm=ACoAAAtvcQcBIGg7BOrubjob6d9Huh03mnxO-mk
Great attittude
DeleteMakkelie handled it well. Alert, respectful and with empathy!
DeleteI may be a bit conservative from this regard, but I don’t like it when referees are profiling themselves on Linked-in or other social media. It can come across as “how to make it about me” :) And although some referees are great ambassadors for their profession, I think in general, it is better to stay in the background as much as possible. I noticed that Gozubuyuk is very low key, he stays away from media/socials. As a result, he is also less a "target" or a scapegoat if you get what I mean. The bigger they are, the harder they fall.
People appreciate referees on social media who help with education and laws of the game questions. Different if you post images of yourself for no reason, some might not like that. But using it to help the game and other refs is no issue at all.
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ReplyDeleteOh no no no 🤦♂️! Ball is lost and no possibility to play the ball after by attacker. Never, never, never PK ! What a shame !
ReplyDeletePlease, it's a clear PK. Cubarsi no touch ball. A shame your comment as a Barça supporter.
DeleteThe penalty is justified. You should take a closer look.
DeleteAnd Lautaro Martinez is fallen before any contact to reach the ball. 0 % chance to control the ball after. And I m not Barca fan. Never a clear mistake here. Stop to VAR refereeing instead main refs. Attacker put his leg on defender zone, not the defender.
DeleteAre we watching the same match?😂
DeleteGood OFR from Marciniak & Higler. No touch on ball from defender.
ReplyDeleteAnd almost impossible to see live. It's for such situations, very hard to see and far from the ref, that VAR is mandatory for high stakes games.
DeleteFlick's anger at the penalty being awarded after the VAR review is incomprehensible.
ReplyDeleteHow's that not YC for Barca's #2?Reckles foul..
ReplyDeleteAlso what happened between Inigo and Acerbi,some fight?
Almost impossible to spot that live, very good VAR intervention and this is the exact reason why VAR is existing
ReplyDeleteHard to see the penalty live, or maybe impossible. I thought about a fair tackle on the ball. Only a late replay allowed VAR to intervene, very long check, this is a classic situation in which you can't blame a referee from his position, impossible to understand whether penalty or not. Possible YC for DOGSO / reckless once whistled it. Marciniak was very respectful of Dutch VARs work, he watched and then agreed with penalty. The broadcaster didn't show what happened after the penalty, but the commentator reported that VAR had checked a possible red card for violent conduct. Unluckily, not even a single replay.
ReplyDeleteAs for the rest, the Polish could have booked for SPA in the midfield at the beginning of the game, very good advantage when then Çalhanoğlu was booked (here by applying the delayed whistle he could have returrned back to foul, not making advantage gesture just to wait and see).
Very "dramatic" gesture, but I like when referees do that to emphasize they are mentally in the game, when VAR checked the possible penalty for handball for Barcelona. I agree it was a NO INTERVENTION by VAR, but if whistled big trouble. In Italy for sure supported and maybe even VAR stuff, but clearly we are on two differetn worlds as you know. Big problm if this had happened in the other penalty area with Italian fans then complaining.
What I don't like today is that Marciniak tolerates dissent from Barcelona players. Most likely he didn't want to inflame things given the background (Barcelona don't win with Marciniak in the middle) but enough should be enough.
ReplyDeleteInter players are similar talkative to Marcinak, don't you think?
DeleteNah, not in this pathetic, dissenting way
DeleteMissed yc there imo. Would have been good for game management too with Barcelona aggrieved at earlier decisions
ReplyDeleteMistake by marciniak prior to 2-2. Phantom foul whistled for Yamal. Bastoni clearly put the ball.
ReplyDeleteAfter using his buttocks, so good call I think.
DeleteNot very good Marciniak tonight. No YC for di Marco, no Bastoni foul (but, if you whistle it, a YC is mandatory), penalty not seen... usual great authority, but many mistakes overall
ReplyDeleteAnother mistake now, although very difficult to evaluate. Meanwhile, I had forgotten the YC not given to Cubarsi in the first half. Overall, bad
DeleteAgree. OFR again to correct ref mistake. Another one on big decisions. Bad night for polish crew…
DeleteIs that not a DOGSO on Yamal ? I haven’t see a replay tbh
ReplyDeleteIt's perhaps underrated but excluding Kwiatkowski for no reason and putting Pskit in the team was a mistake (by RefCom?). Then, the punishment of Kwiatkowski for Pskit's wrong intervention is a draconian one, isn't it? I don't get how Rosetti manages things but no Kwiatkowski in team Marciniak surely has its effect on the overall performance.
ReplyDeleteI don't understand how? Do you think none of the OFRs would happen? Both were clear and necessary interventions.
DeleteOr do you talk about the atmosphere in the referee team outside the pitch?
Nah, the OFRs are not a big problem. Both were very tight calls and no blame should be put on Marciniak here, imo. The overall handling of the game is not as smooth as usual and here I think the atmosphere plays a very big role. Kwiatkowski is in constant communication with Marciniak during games, so difficult to expect the same from other VAR
DeleteIn ny opinion this is exactly what Rosetti and Co. wanted by appointing Marciniak with foreign VARs...
Delete@Chefren +1
DeleteTook his "weapon"
What do you think about what happened after the 2-0? Looks like Barca #5 spit towards Acerbi
ReplyDeletehttps://x.com/arkos71/status/1919844944266596702?s=46
I just wanted to post it as well. It looks like that but without a proof you can do nothing as VAR...
DeleteVAR checked. No conclusive proof.
DeleteHum hum. When you see video from X, clear spit by Barcelona player. Concerning FO, What a hell for him with benches. Unbelievable attitude…
DeleteDefinitely too many protests from Barça during the game and they were never right. Very hateful attitude, even worse than the Italian one in my opinion (because I must admit here is the same).
ReplyDeleteVery ironic of Barcelona to criticise Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey to then engage in exactly the same type of behaviour themselves
Deletelike the south american players
DeleteCome on, protests come from both sides.
DeleteAnd there were few decisions that are understandably controversial on the pitch, close calls in such an important match
Too many, too many protests and improprieties conceded to Barcelona and its bench tonight. Marciniak lost control, nightmare
ReplyDeleteHe's a referee, not a God. The Barcelona players are reacting for very little good reason.
DeleteIt always annoys me when people try and hold the referee accountable for the behaviour of an entire team intent on being as dissentful as possible
Problem is that they let Inzaghi run around as usual 20 meters outside the technical area. And then Barcelona feels treated differently when they are told to behave and stay inside the technical area. It's embarrassing to see how pro refs allow managers to behave. What's the point of the technical area?
DeleteIf you allow anything for 90 and don't even bring up an RC for the coach on the bench after what happened, it means that you voluntarily chose to accept that behaviour
DeleteMarciniak leads this match with class, his attitude is good and open.
ReplyDeleteIts the football game that we went to see, and the referee is a part of it.
Deletetotally agree
An extraordinary match and an extraordinary series. I loved Marciniak's old style of letting things play out; I missed it. If you want the referee to call every foul and show inconsequential yellow cards, put a robot to referee. and if you don't want to see friction or touches, watch tennis or volleyball.
ReplyDeleteIt's fine that Marciniak is as untouchable as Kuipers was a few years ago, but to even praise him for this match (two OFRs, at least three lost YCs, Barcelona's goal coming from a phantom foul, Barcelona's bench totally out of control, etc.) seems frankly excessive even for fans
DeleteAnd half Time whistled without any intelligence with big attack from Inter. Not focused at all…
DeleteVery difficult match with a masterclass lesson of officiating .
DeleteI agree with Anpicor. They want a guy who shows cards when players trip alone
DeleteWhat timing to blow the whistle! Deja vu of Munich last year?
ReplyDeleteReferee team really losing focus now. More than 1 meter offside missed by AR1.
ReplyDeleteOffside missed and…phantom one after for AR1. Referees are tired….
DeleteAnd now Marciniak in the way of Barcelona promising attack. What else can go wrong?
ReplyDeleteThe behaviour of the benches in modern football is absolutely pathetic (but even more pathetic the authorities who let it happen). The cards for non-playing participants should be immediately discontinued and has been a total disaster - giving a ‘freebee’ for what previously would have been an instant expulsion. The apogee of this trend was in the Qatar WC. This week, I watched the semifinal of Euro’96 Germany-England and Berti Voghts/Terry Venables didn’t leave the bench once and behaved absolutely impeccably. Was that game really less important than the one is tonight? Now, we have these people who behave like maniacs from the first minute and nobody does anything - all because it is explicitly tolerated by the powers-that-be (whatever they may say). I agree with what Euro Soccer Ref says about the VAR change but not totally with Chefren: Barcelona had justifiable cause for disagreement in the 3-3 goal, because it was (imo) quite a clear foul beforehand.
ReplyDeleteInzaghi is constantly 2/3 meters on the line and no strong reaction by FO. No management from the benches. All is allowed : so nightmare leadership from polish team.
DeleteCrazy tie overall
ReplyDeleteEveryone can have their own opinion on the referee's performance, but we saw an epic match. Honestly, this will join the history of Champions League. I will make a particular questiont to all of you, regardless of the performance, can you imagine a different (mostly less experienced than the Polish) referee here? And what could have happened in your opinion?
ReplyDeleteNobody will talk about Marciniak. Which is a great thing. Of course there were mistakes, but who is faultless? Marciniak has truly achieved a legendary status in football and gets a lot of respect from football fans. What more can we ask for?
DeleteVery good point, And that's what my comment was about, it's a semi-final, a fierce match, what did you expect? Excellent refereeing.
DeleteI think you are spot on with this comment Chefren. Two OFRs, both very difficiult to impossible to stop. Furthermore a style of refeering witch let the teams play and gave us this masterpiece in football. Yes i understand why some peiple will complain but in the end managing a game like this shows the skills of Marceniak.
ReplyDeleteIMO the two OFRs are not a big issue - Marciniak couldn't see the tackle properly through the bodies and the outside/inside call was extremely close (some 'experts' on Polish X even argue it was a wrong intervention by VAR). Other KMIs rather correctly assessed, including the most discussed handball.
ReplyDeleteI just didn't like that Marciniak tolerated too much in this game. Several dissenting behaviours from Barcelona players were too much to turn a blind eye for. It was clearly visible that, apart from being flustered, they didn't respect him at all and therefore cautions should follow. It is possible UEFA told the referees to be less strict in the knock-out stages, especially in QFs and SFs, though.
I still can't understand referees tolerating constant Inzaghi's trips (far) outside the technical area - either in Serie A or UEFA. It's OK to cross the line every now and then but not so often and so blatantly like Inzaghi in every game...
In general, not a sooo bad game from Marciniak but surely it was not the same BOSS Marciniak like he used to be in the past.
I don't know what happened between Marciniak and Sokolnicki and what is the exact reason for Kwiatkowski's absence/exclusion but I'm sure that with their presence it was far better Team Marciniak than nowadays.
Btw, a very problematic situation of Polish VAR officials in UEFA competitions:
- Malec (and Stefański?) punished (most likely for a very long period) for that mistake with offside in UNL Sweden - Azerbaijan
- Lasyk (and Myć) with a wrong intervention in San Marino - Romania,
- Pskit (and Kwiatkowski?) punished for a very wrong intervention in Germany - Italy UNL QF
Mikulski is really weak as the head of referees (Przesmycki was the boss we didn't deserve ;)), not in real control as he didn't quit his job as a cardiologist, allowing strange VAR interventions causing problems for Polish VARs in UEFA competitions and this season we had so many mistakes in Polish Ekstraklasa that I don't remember such a catastrophic season by refs and VARs. I always say that the refereeing boss should be someone charismatic, strong and brave in his decisions. The best example was Przesmycki but today such "leaders" like Rosetti, Rocchi, Medina Cantalejo and Mikulski are liked...
Flick blame Marciniak when he said every 50:50 decision going to Inter. Well I agree with Chefren we can't imagine another referee could lead and end this epic match without less controversy than Marciniak.
ReplyDeleteIt’s outdated to say 50/50. Tired of players and managers saying that. What on earth do they even think a 50/50 challenge is…
Delete@VG close call, those in which VAR doesnt intervene in both cases
DeleteWhat is interesting is the missed VAR intervention for the 3-3: Is that not a clear tripping from Dumfries against Gerard Martin moments before the equalizer?
ReplyDeleteAlso, very weird how the TV directors showed the Inter penalty 5 times from all possible angles in the replays and the close non-penalty (outside of the box), while they skipped all of the controversial moments which were unfortunate for Barcelona. These directors should usually be as neutral as the referees, since they influence the public's perception a lot and possibly the VAR's too, since they have the live broadcast infront of them, in case they have pictures there that the VAR would have missed otherwise. Amazing game of football though, where Marciniak won't necessarily be the topic of the game, but very annoying mistakes were included nonetheless.
So, we had the following situations with some controversy according to Spanish and Catalan media and refereeing analysis:
ReplyDelete- potential pk for handball for Barcelona in the 1H, rebound but the hand in open position and high?
- pk for Inter, last replay showing clearly so no controversy in the end?
- pk for Barcelona and then VAR said it was out, was there another contact while sliding that justifies a pk?
- potential foul before the goal for 3-3.
They comment, I think with a reason, that except for the pk against Barca we didnt really see all the angles snd replays to clarify.
In general I liked Marciniak style and mostly he was managing the game well, except dealing better with the benches, but honestly I think in such games 4OF should be someone with authority, that also helps a bit.
ReplyDeleteAlso after the penalty for Inter he allowed more dissent and talked a lot with players and coach. Which imo showed some emotional intelligence, seeing that they are very nervous and knowing half time is coming so no need to assert the authority.
Embarassing to see how many people,especially Barca fans are criticising Marciniak.
ReplyDeleteTalk about double standards,they preach about Real and their complaints and then they do the same.
What should Inter then say about spitting incident?
What about that?
Are we suppose to pretend that it was not on purpose and that Inigo should have seen red?
Generally,Marciniak did great job in balancing sanctions and verbal communication with players.
Maybe allowing too much from benches especially Barca's but one can understand that it was very emotional and temperamental game.
But then again,if there wasn't VAR,we would not be talking about him in a positive way.
Cause he missed penalty for Inter and gave one for Barcelona,foul that was outside the box.
That's 2 crucial mistakes.
And then if we count some contact before 3-3 and spitting incident then we get totally different picture about his performance.
But then again,I cant think of another ref that would be good like he was yesterday.
In the end this is my final assessment as well.
DeleteNot the best Marciniak, VAR interventions, challenging moments, but his presence was felt and you definitely can't know what would have happened in a so hot and long game with another referee. Sometimes you have the idea that such clashes can be officiated only by some referees. A narrow pool. This can be maybe a wrong argument, but another name would have had everything to lose, if we talk about a "regular" UEFA Elite...
Yep,for example the elites are Zwayer and Kovacs.
DeleteBut I dont know how much their style would be good for this match.
Also you have Turpin who maybe could have handled this type of match,but also he lacks body language and emotion that Marciniak has.
So I dont know who could have done better job than him I really dont.
Gentelmans,good morning. I like what I saw from Marciniak last night, and in game like this, he did very good job. Problem was with benches managment, but both benches was true heated at moment, and he made perfect balance with it. Two Var interventions, first one, nobody would spot it live. Second one, hard to see, when I watch game before replat,for me was inside the box, but replay showed what is really. He was accpeted by players, eith high authority. What I think, advanicng of Inter in final eliminate English referees. So, 97 percent that Kovacs will be in final. We will see.
ReplyDelete