Thursday 7 December 2017

Europa League 2017/18 - Referee Appointments - Matchday 6

UEFA Referees Committee has appointed the following officials to handle MD6 games of 2017/18 Europa League group stage. 

Group A | 19:00 CET, Prague
SK Slavia Praha - FK Astana
Referee: Davide Massa (ITA)
Assistant Referee 1: Filippo Meli (ITA)
Assistant Referee 2: Alberto Tegoni (ITA)
Fourth Official: Andrea Crispo (ITA)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Paolo Silvio Mazzoleni (ITA)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Antonio Damato (ITA)
UEFA Referee Observer: Gylfi Þór Orrason (ISL)
UEFA Delegate: Mirosław Ryszka (POL)

Group A | 19:00 CET, Villarreal
Villarreal CF - Maccabi Tel-Aviv FC
Referee: Mads-Kristoffer Kristoffersen (DEN)
Assistant Referee 1: Henrik Sønderby (DEN)
Assistant Referee 2: Dennis Wollenberg Rasmussen (DEN)
Fourth Official: Lars Hummelgaard (DEN)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Anders Poulsen (DEN)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Jørgen Daugbjerg Burchardt (DEN)
UEFA Referee Observer: Elmir Pilav (BIH)
UEFA Delegate: Scott Struthers (SCO)

Group B | 19:00 CET, Berne
BSC Young Boys - KF Skënderbeu
Referee: Simon Lee Evans (WAL)
Assistant Referee 1: Philip Thomas (WAL)
Assistant Referee 2: Ian Bird (WAL)
Fourth Official: Daniel Beckett (WAL)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Bryn David Markham-Jones (WAL)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Nicholas Pratt (WAL)
UEFA Referee Observer: Kóstas Kapitanís (CYP)
UEFA Delegate: Tammo Beishuizen (NED)

Group B | 19:00 CET, Kyiv
FC Dynamo Kyiv - FK Partizan
Referee: Paweł Gil (POL)
Assistant Referee 1: Konrad Sapela (POL)
Assistant Referee 2: Marcin Borkowski (POL)
Fourth Official: Adam Kupsik (POL)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Jarosław Przybył (POL)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Piotr Lasyk (POL)
UEFA Referee Observer: Manuel López Fernández (ESP)
UEFA Delegate: Michael Foster (ENG)

Group C | 19:00 CET, Istanbul
İstanbul Başakşehir - SC Braga
Referee: John Beaton (SCO)
Assistant Referee 1: Douglas Potter (SCO)
Assistant Referee 2: Sean Carr (SCO)
Fourth Official: Jordan Stokoe (SCO)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Steven McLean (SCO)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Alan Muir (SCO)
UEFA Referee Observer: Joeri Van De Velde (BEL)
UEFA Delegate: Olzhas Abrayev (KAZ)

Group C | 19:00 CET, Sinsheim
TSG 1899 Hoffenheim - PFC Ludogorets 1945
Referee: Orel Grinfeld (ISR)
Assistant Referee 1: Danny Krasikow (ISR)
Assistant Referee 2: Roy Hassan (ISR)
Fourth Official: Amihay Yehoshua Mozes (ISR)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Eli Hacmon (ISR)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Ziv Adler (ISR)
UEFA Referee Observer: Jørn West Larsen (DEN)
UEFA Delegate: Tarik Shamel (ENG)

Group D | 19:00 CET, Vienna
FK Austria Wien - AEK Athens FC
Referee: Craig Pawson (ENG)
Assistant Referee 1: Stephen Child (ENG)
Assistant Referee 2: Adam Nunn (ENG)
Fourth Official: Lee Betts (ENG)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Robert Madley (ENG)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Jonathan Moss (ENG)
UEFA Referee Observer: Lutz Michael Fröhlich (GER)
UEFA Delegate: Jacob Erel (ISR)

Group D | 19:00 CET, Rijeka
HNK Rijeka - AC Milan
Referee: István Vad (HUN)
Assistant Referee 1: István Albert (HUN)
Assistant Referee 2: Péter Berettyán (HUN)
Fourth Official: Theodoros Georgiou (HUN)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Ferenc Karakó (HUN)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: József Erdős (HUN)
UEFA Referee Observer: Sokol Jareci (ALB)
UEFA Delegate: Steve Stride (ENG)

Group E | 19:00 CET, Nicosia
Apóllon Limassol FC - Everton FC
Referee: Sébastien Delférière (BEL)
Assistant Referee 1: Yves De Neve (BEL)
Assistant Referee 2: Kevin Monteny (BEL)
Fourth Official: Jo De Weirdt (BEL)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Lawrence Visser (BEL)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Alexandre Boucaut (BEL)
UEFA Referee Observer: Michael Thomas Ross (NIR)
UEFA Delegate: Luis Cuervas del Real (ESP)

Group E | 19:00 CET, Reggio Emilia
Atalanta Bergamasca Calcio - Olympique Lyonnais
Referee: Aleksey Yeskov (RUS)
Assistant Referee 1: Dmitriy Mosyakin (RUS)
Assistant Referee 2: Igor Demeshko (RUS)
Fourth Official: Valeriy Danchenko (RUS)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Mikhail Vilkov (RUS)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Vladimir Moskalov (RUS)
UEFA Referee Observer: Michális Argyroú (CYP)
UEFA Delegate: Jean-François Crucke (BEL)

Group F | 19:00 CET, Olomouc
FC Fastav Zlín - FC Lokomotiv Moskva
Referee: Mete Kalkavan (TUR)
Assistant Referee 1: Ceyhun Sesigüzel (TUR)
Assistant Referee 2: Esat Sancaktar (TUR)
Fourth Official: Kemal Yılmaz (TUR)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Halil Umut Meler (TUR)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Arda Kardeşler (TUR)
UEFA Referee Observer: Michael Riley (ENG)
UEFA Delegate: Jan Willem van Dop (NED)

Group F | 19:00 CET, Copenhagen
FC København - FC Sheriff
Referee: Serdar Gözübüyük (NED)
Assistant Referee 1: Davy Goossens (NED)
Assistant Referee 2: Bas van Dongen (NED)
Fourth Official: Joost van Zuilen (NED)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Dennis Higler (NED)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Jeroen Manschot (NED)
UEFA Referee Observer: Laurent Duhamel (FRA)
UEFA Delegate: Camelia Nicolae (ROU)

Group G | 21:05 CET, Bucharest
FCSB - FC Lugano
Referee: Nikola Dabanović (MNE)
Assistant Referee 1: Milutin Đukić (MNE)
Assistant Referee 2: Jovica Tatar (MNE)
Fourth Official: Vladan Todorović (MNE)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Miloš Bošković (MNE)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Miloš Savović (MNE)
UEFA Referee Observer:
UEFA Delegate:

Group G | 21:05 CET, Beer-Sheva
Hapoel Beer-Sheva FC - FC Viktoria Plzeň
Referee: Aleksandar Stavrev (MKD)
Assistant Referee 1: Marjan Kirovski (MKD)
Assistant Referee 2: Dejan Kostadinov (MKD)
Fourth Official: Goce Petreski (MKD)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Dimitar Mečkarovski (MKD)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Dejan Jakimovski (MKD)
UEFA Referee Observer: Marián Ružbarský (SVK)
UEFA Delegate: Milovan Đukanović (MNE)

Group H | 21:05 CET, London
Arsenal FC - FC BATE Barysau
Referee: Robert Schörgenhofer (AUT)
Assistant Referee 1: Markus Gutschi (AUT)
Assistant Referee 2: Roland Riedel (AUT)
Fourth Official: Andreas Witschnigg (AUT)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Markus Hameter (AUT)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: René Eisner (AUT)
UEFA Referee Observer: Tomasz Mikulski (POL)
UEFA Delegate: Mikael Salzer (SWE)

Group H | 21:05 CET, Belgrade
FK Crvena zvezda - 1. FC Köln
Referee: Robert Madden (SCO)
Assistant Referee 1: David McGeachie (SCO)
Assistant Referee 2: Alastair Mather (SCO)
Fourth Official: Francis Connor (SCO)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Donald Robertson (SCO)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Euan Anderson (SCO)
UEFA Referee Observer: Thomas Einwaller (AUT)
UEFA Delegate: David McDowell-Zor (SVN)

Group I | 21:05 CET, Marseille
Olympique de Marseille - FC Red Bull Salzburg
Referee: Aliaksiej Kulbakou (BLR)
Assistant Referee 1: Dzmitryj Žuk (BLR)
Assistant Referee 2: Alieh Maslianka (BLR)
Fourth Official: Juryj Chomčanka (BLR)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Dzianis Ščarbakoŭ (BLR)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Dzmitryj Dzmitryjeŭ (BLR)
UEFA Referee Observer: Manuel Díaz Vega (ESP)
UEFA Delegate: István Huszár (HUN)

Group I | 21:05 CET, Guimarães
Vitória SC - Atiker Konyaspor
Referee: Daniel Siebert (GER)
Assistant Referee 1: Holger Henschel (GER)
Assistant Referee 2: Rafael Foltyn (GER)
Fourth Official: Guido Kleve (GER)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Sascha Stegemann (GER)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Benjamin Brand (GER)
UEFA Referee Observer: Haim Jakov (ISR)
UEFA Delegate: Angelo Chetcuti (MLT)

Group J | 21:05 CET, Lviv
FC Zorya Luhansk - Athletic Club
Referee: Ruddy Buquet (FRA)
Assistant Referee 1: Guillaume Debart (FRA)
Assistant Referee 2: Frédéric Cano (FRA)
Fourth Official: Cyril Gringore (FRA)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Amaury Delerue (FRA)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: François Letexier (FRA)
UEFA Referee Observer: Jan Willem Wegereef (NED)
UEFA Delegate: Andrian Ixari (MDA)

Group J | 21:05 CET, Berlin
Hertha BSC - Östersunds FK
Referee: Tiago Bruno Lopes Martins (POR)
Assistant Referee 1: Ricardo Jorge Ferreira dos Santos (POR)
Assistant Referee 2: Luís André Ferreira Pinto Campos (POR)
Fourth Official: Rui Miguel Martins Teixeira (POR)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Hugo Filipe Ferreira de Campos Moreira Miguel (POR)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: João Carlos dos Santos Capela (POR)
UEFA Referee Observer: Luciano Luci (ITA)
UEFA Delegate: Paul Krähenbühl (SUI)

Group K | 21:05 CET, Arnhem
SBV Vitesse - OGC Nice
Referee: Sandro Schärer (SUI)
Assistant Referee 1: Slađan Josipovic (SUI)
Assistant Referee 2: Bekim Zogaj (SUI)
Fourth Official: Stéphane De Almeida (SUI)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Alain Bieri (SUI)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Lukas Fähndrich (SUI)
UEFA Referee Observer: Kristinn Jakobsson (ISL)
UEFA Delegate: Per Svärd (SWE)

Group K | 21:05 CET, Waregem
SV Zulte Waregem - SS Lazio
Referee: Charálampos Kalogerópoulos (GRE)
Assistant Referee 1: Damianós Efthymiádis (GRE)
Assistant Referee 2: Trỳfon Petrópoulos (GRE)
Fourth Official: Ioánnis Toumpakáris (GRE)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Geórgios Komínis (GRE)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Stávros Mántalos (GRE)
UEFA Referee Observer: Darko Čeferin (SVN)
UEFA Delegate: Romano Clavedetscher (SUI)

Group L | 21:05 CET, Skopje
FK Vardar - Rosenborg BK
Referee: Serhiy Boyko (UKR)
Assistant Referee 1: Volodymyr Volodin (UKR)
Assistant Referee 2: Oleksandr Korniyko (UKR)
Fourth Official: Semen Shlonchak (UKR)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Yevhen Aranovskyy (UKR)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Anatoliy Abdula (UKR)
UEFA Referee Observer: Gerard Perry (IRL)
UEFA Delegate: Dane Jošt (SVN)

Group L | 21:05 CET, San Sebastián
Real Sociedad de Fútbol - FC Zenit
Referee: Liran Liani (ISR)
Assistant Referee 1: David Elias Biton (ISR)
Assistant Referee 2: Dvir Shimon (ISR)
Fourth Official: Idan Yarkoni (ISR)
Additional Assistant Referee 1: Alon Yefet (ISR)
Additional Assistant Referee 2: Menashe Masiah (ISR)
UEFA Referee Observer: Luc Wilmes (LUX)
UEFA Delegate: Thura Win (ENG)

139 comments:

  1. Thank you so much, RayHD.
    As you pointed out, we have Kulbakov and Buquet with similar assignments: two games in Champions League and then the third one in Europa League. Differently from Taylor, Oliver and Dias with three games in Champions League.
    This can be a signal, I think we can expect that both the English men and the Portuguese will be the three referees promoted to Elite Category.

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    1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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    2. Dias promotion would be deserved.

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  2. De Sousa as well with 2 CL + 1 EL game. Very likely, the Category 1 referees who are not planned for a promotion, can't get three CL games in group stage, or at least this is the choice by committee.

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  3. Congratulations to: Mete Kalkavan (TUR), Charálampos Kalogerópoulos (GRE), Mads-Kristoffer Kristoffersen (DEN) and Tiago Bruno Lopes Martins (POR) for their debuts.

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    1. The appointment of Tiago Martins indicates that he could be the new Portuguese referee in category 1. A weak referee, very weak, protected by the former head of the Portuguese referee: Vitor Pereira.

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    1. Yes! The same for Massa...

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    2. Speaking to Pawson, he thought that he was close to First Category last summer, so surely he's been given some signals by UEFA. His observation by Levnikov at the U21 EURO Qualifier Spain - Croatia, was positive and the Russian was impressed.
      I expect and hope for his promotion at Christmas.

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  5. Another good appointment for Dabanovic. Maybe he is considered for promotion to first group. Not now, but next year

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    1. This is his second match. I've never seen him on the pitch, I only know that he was last year at the final U19 tournament in Germany as fourth official and few years ago at final U17 tournament on Malta.

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  6. I thought that this Johannesson’s last year as a referee, but he had no game as an farewell game, not on md5 and on md6 he is AAR with Eriksson. One of the swedish fifa referees need to quit this year because it is already announced that there’s is going to be a new fifa referee, and don’t se i anyway that sweden will have 8 fifa referee

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  7. CLUB WORLD CUP
    PLAY OFF FOR QUARTERFINALS
    06/12/17
    Al Jazira vs Auckland City:
    A: Malang Diedhiou (SEN)
    AA1: Djibril Camara (SEN)
    AA2: El Hadji Samba (SEN)
    4to: Sandro Ricci (BRA)
    VAR: Mark Geiger (USA)
    AVAR: Felix Zwayer (GER)
    VAR2: Emerson Carvalho (BRA)

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    1. FIFA.com says VAR1: Turpin, AVAR: Geiger
      (and Arbitro Internacional has it changed now as well)

      Maybe they did not trust Diedhiou's English abilities...

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    2. Yes, Turpin and Diedhiou can communicate in French.

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    3. As far as I've spoken to him, Diedhiou's English is very much good... But still communication with Turpin is much more comfortable for him... But English is very much decent I can confirm!

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    4. Nice insight :-)

      Really important match for Diedhiou, it is between him, Gassama, Sikazwe and Grisha for surely three WC tickets from CAF.
      In case of a bad performance, I think that is 'game over' for the Senegalese trio, at least for whistling a match in the pitch.

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  8. I don't know if anybody mentioned it on this blog, however, I think it is an interesting topic:

    The two Austrian referees Manuel Schüttengruber and Dieter Muckenhammer recieved death threats by email from supporters of SK Rapid Wien, because they took some decisions against this club in the last week. Schüttengruber gave two penalties + 2RC for DOGSO against Rapid at their 1-2 loss against Altach. One penalty + RC was fully correct, in the other one the ref can be backed. So no scandalous decisions here.
    A few days before, referee Markus Hameter allowed a goal by Rapid after a corner kick, but Muckenhammer, who was fourth official, informed Hameter that there was a handball before the goal. Hameter changed his decision from goal to a FK and cautioned the player, so again a correct decision. Someone claimed, that Muckenhammer saw a replay on Tv before informing the ref. But the tv-stations said that they didn't send any replay of the goal until the decision had been already changed, so we had to trust Muckenhammer there.

    However, I think highly unacceptable behaviour from such "supporters" who sends death threats to the referees!

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    1. Furthermore, some players of Rapid critized the referees in TV interviews, their captain backited the rumours about a TV proof, why Dieter Muckenhammer called those players 'spineless' in an interview as well. I'm sure, he won't be appointed for games of Rapid Vienna for some time.

      Schüttengruber handles the UEFA Youth League game between FC Bayern and PSG tomorrow.

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  9. OT
    Has anyone seen this interview from mark Clattenburg recently? What are your thoughts

    Rog: I need to ask you this: did a Clattenburg refereed game have a personality, if so, what were its traits?
    Clats: There's one game in particular, which was the "Battle of Stamford Bridge." It was Chelsea vs. Tottenham, if was the famous that year Leicester win the title, it was theater. I went in with a gameplan that I didn't want Tottenham Hotspur blaming Mark Clattenburg that they were gonna lose the title. It should've been 3 red cards to Tottenham; I allowed them to self-destruct so all the media, all the people in the world went, "Tottenham lost the title." If I sent 3 players off from Tottenham, what's the headlines? "Clattenburg lost Tottenham the title," and it was pure theater that Tottenham self-destructed against Chelsea and Leicester win the title.
    Rog: In that game, were the Chelsea players not screaming bloody murder, they're like, "Clattenburg what are you doing we're getting massacred here!"
    Clats: It was the first game where Diego Costa never got cautioned (laughs). It was so crazy when you look back at the game but, when Hazard scored to equalize to make it 2-2 I've never felt an atmosphere in a stadium before like that before, because of Chelsea had stopped one of the enemies winning the title.
    Rog: In a way you scripted it.
    Clats: ...I helped the game, I certainly benefited the game by my style of refereeing. Some referees would have played by the book and Tottenham would have been down to 7 or 8 players and probably lost, and Tottenham would've been looking for an excuse but I didn't give them an excuse, because me gameplan was let them lose the title.
    Rog: Listening to this, I was like, "Wow, Mark Clattenburg, even crazier than Diego Costa" (Clats laughs) that is saying something, but you've said, "I want games to be a spectacle," and hearing you talk about the Battle of Stamford Bridge, is that the referee's job or is it really down to the players?
    Clats: I think we're all part of theater. That's why the Premier League is the best league in the world. Its assisted by the best players, the best referees, the best coaches, and we've all got a duty to make sure the game's enhanced. The English style of refereeing is different; I had to referee differently when I went into Europe than I did in the Premier League because none of the top players in Europe would accept some of the physical contact that went on in the Premier League - but that was the theater, that's what people loved. They love a tackle, they don't want it punished.
    Rog: You pride yourself on man-management, its a phrase that comes up in conversation with you over and over, talking to the players rather than cautioning them, as you've said, you occasionally famously called them "mate" on the field. How do the players react to that? Do they really want to reciprocate and get on with the referee?
    Clats: Gotta know the right time, that what's experience. Some young referees will try to speak to players too much and players sometimes don't want them to speak. I remember refereeing Ashley Cole. Speaking to Ashley Cole at the wrong time when he was going through things with his head (garbled) doing some tactics. But there were good times to speak to Ashley Cole, when he was calm and he was ready to get on with. Speaking to the player at the wrong time can have a bad effect.
    link to interview- https://soundcloud.com/meninblazers/men-in-blazers-120117-mark-clattenburg-pod-special, quote starts around 9:37

    Here are some incidents from that game: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMBGE_9FdKY&t=3s

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    1. Never ever been his fan... And the reasons are clear enough now... Also he didn't do us any favour by managing the match in the way he did; his performance that night was absolutely poor!!

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    2. Agree with Soham. I'm quite shocked by this interview, I must admit. As referee, you can't act in this way. You must always apply the LotG. He should have been silent, he gained a big success culminating in 2016 with both CL and EURO final, but after that everything about him was more than poorly managed. The end of career without having clear ideas (do you remember how it was difficult to understand what was happening?) and then now this interview. I'm sad but I have to say that Clattenburg shouldn't be a good example for young referees who dream a big career.
      That's a reason for which I was disappointed when he got a EL in last KO stage, after having announced his retirement and all the stuff. Absolutely poor from Clattenburg. Technically he has been a talent of refereeing, but at the same time surely not a professional person.

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    3. Chefren sums it up perfectly about Clattenburg... This is just an example for referees about how one shouldn't be... Some section of people always said that he is way too proud about his achievements and sometimes bordering on thinking himself to be above the game itself... And this interview goes on to prove that its right... I can't imagine the audacity with which he is proudly describing how he deliberately didn't follow the LOTG... Really something young referees should never idolise... Now I really understand why he had problems in England with the powers... This is some high degree of unprofessionalism by someone who was called the best in the world; maybe the excessive pride resulting from the way too much of big appointments in a short span of time... Collina must regret the way he managed Clattenburg!!

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    4. Chefren and Soham out of interest did you listen to all the interview?

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    5. If get the chance, I would recommend it, a fantastic insight from one of the greatest referees of this generation (his CL Final!)- whatever you think of him.

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    6. No, I didn't listen to all the interview.

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  10. Premier League

    Sat 9th Dec 2017
    Burnley FC (First Team) v Watford FC (First Team)
    Premier League
    Referee: Probert, Lee
    Assistant Referee: Beck, Simon
    Assistant Referee: Garratt, Andrew
    Fourth Official: Marriner, Andre

    Crystal Palace FC (First Team) v AFC Bournemouth (First Team)
    Premier League
    Referee: Friend, Kevin
    Assistant Referee: Hussin, Ian
    Assistant Referee: Eaton, Derek
    Fourth Official: Langford, Oliver

    Huddersfield Town FC (First Team) v Brighton & Hove Albion FC (First Team)
    Premier League
    Referee: Attwell, Stuart
    Assistant Referee: Smart, Edward
    Assistant Referee: Halliday, Andrew
    Fourth Official: Jones, Michael

    Newcastle United FC (First Team) v Leicester City FC (First Team)
    Premier League
    Referee: Swarbrick, Neil
    Assistant Referee: Ledger, Scott
    Assistant Referee: West, Richard
    Fourth Official: Mason, Lee

    Swansea City FC (First Team) v West Bromwich Albion FC (First Team)
    Premier League
    Referee: Dean, Michael
    Assistant Referee: Long, Simon
    Assistant Referee: Cook, Dan
    Fourth Official: Brooks, John

    Tottenham Hotspur (First Team) v Stoke City FC (First Team)
    Premier League
    Referee: East, Roger
    Assistant Referee: Holmes, Adrian
    Assistant Referee: McDonough, Michael
    Fourth Official: Tierney, Paul

    West Ham United (First Team) v Chelsea (First Team)
    Premier League
    Referee: Taylor, Anthony
    Assistant Referee: Kirkup, Peter
    Assistant Referee: Burt, Stuart
    Fourth Official: Scott, Graham

    Sun 10th Dec 2017
    Liverpool FC (First Team) v Everton FC (First Team)
    Premier League
    Referee: Pawson, Craig
    Assistant Referee: Betts, Lee
    Assistant Referee: Nunn, Adam
    Fourth Official: Atkinson, Martin

    Manchester United FC (First Team) v Manchester City FC (First Team)
    Premier League
    Referee: Oliver, Michael
    Assistant Referee: Beswick, Gary
    Assistant Referee: Bennett, Simon
    Fourth Official: Moss, Jonathan

    Southampton FC (First Team) v Arsenal (First Team)
    Premier League
    Referee: Madley, Robert
    Assistant Referee: Child, Steve
    Assistant Referee: Perry, Marc
    Fourth Official: Scott, Graham

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  11. https://www.facebook.com/fifaworldcup/videos/2024475664234937/
    Another video from seminar in UAE

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  12. IFFHS Ranking of Referees in 2017. Yeah, they even can't write all the names correctly. As always it's a joke. ;)

    1 – Felix BRYCH (Germany) 178 points
    2 – Martin ATKINSON (England) 73 points
    3 – Nicola RIZZOLI (Italy) 59 points
    4 – Mark CLATTENBURG (England) 50 points
    5 – Nestor PITANA (Argentina) 46 points
    6 – Bjorn KUIPERS (Netherlands) 44 points
    7 – Damir SKOMINA (Slovenia) 40 points
    8 – Cuneyt CAKIR (Turkey) 39 points
    9 – Milorad MAZIC (Serbia) 38 points
    10- Antonio MATHEU LAHOZ (Spain) 32 points
    11- Gianluca ROCCHI (Italy) 20 points
    12- Wilmar ROLDAN (Colombia) 18 points
    13- Papa Bakary GASSAMA (Gambia) 17 points
    14- Jonas ERICSSON (Sweden) 16 points
    15- Viktor KASSAI (Hungary) 14 points
    16- Fahad AL MIRDARI (Saudi Arabia) 6 points
    16- Simon MARCINIAK (Poland) 6 points
    18- Malang DIEDHOU (Senegal) 3 points
    18- Alireza FAGHANI (Iran) 3 points
    20- Cesar Arturo RAMOS (Mexico) 1 point

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    1. It is really shocking to read that they don't even care about the correct names... ERICSSON.... MIRDARI... no comment.

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    2. MATHEU.... DIEDHOU :D these were "more challenging" to be spotted :D

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    3. The ranking is a total joke as always 😐

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    4. Is it already official ? Generally the results are available begin of January. Anyway, this rating is not serious !!! Atkinson is not officiating at international level since last May, how can be second ? Same for Rizzoli and Clatts; they left the field many months ago....Pitana better tan Kuipers ? Mhhmm

      Delete
  13. As I already said in another posting, I cannot understand the appointments of group D. A second group referee (Craig Pawson) for an extremely important game (the winner will reach the knock-out stage), while there's an expierienced first group referee (Istvan Vad) for an meaningless game (Milan is already the group winner, Rijeka is already out).

    ReplyDelete
  14. Good assignment for Madden. Winner takes all!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I had this as match of the round. Sure to be a big test of a referee I first seen as a young man in Dallas ten years ago. He was a real talent then (pre FIFA) and no surprise to see him on this important match.

      Delete
  15. May I have your comment / feeling on the following article / post ?
    Probably Mark Szanto is the most skille don this topic.
    http://refereeingworld.blogspot.it/2017/12/kassai-placed-6th-on-hungarian-fifa-list.html
    Thanks

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. most skilled on... sorry

      Delete
    2. Response from the Hungarian FA
      “Out of its many tasks, the Hungarian Football Association (MLSZ) considers the most important to be the development of the quality of football. The association makes all of its decisions in the spirit that their actions lead to the improvement of the quality of football. In all instances a sort of impartiality is required; personal interests can never influence professional decisions. In recent days, many articles have dealt with referee Viktor Kassai’s absence from the World Cup. In regards to his person and professional activities, the MLSZ have the following to say. Every professional decision may result in positive or negative personal outcomes, as is the case in all procedures where the goal is guaranteeing quality and continuous improvement. The members of the Hungarian refereeing team have been doing their work at an internationally accepted professional level for years; part of this is the evaluation and ranking of performance. Referees must accept when personnel decisions based on performance affect them in a negative way. Domestic referees are assessed based on their aggregate performance in domestic league games in the NB1, since the interest of the MLSZ is first and foremost the improvement of the quality of domestic refereeing. In recent years, several assessments, praise, criticism, and analysis have seen the light of day relating to Viktor Kassai, who was voted the world’s best referee in 2011. In the last six months, both the domestic and international media have dealt with his performances relating to the Champions League quarter-final Bayern Munich - Real Madrid and the World Cup qualifier Turkey - Croatia. As with these games, the MLSZ always stands with our referees that do their work to the best of their ability, when they receive criticism from home or abroad. As Sándor Csányi, president of the MLSZ, said at this year’s convention, every sportsman, including referees, can make mistakes; however, in no case is there an excuse for behaviour that is unacceptable towards the sport and its participants i.e. players, sporting directors or fans. Regarding Viktor Kassai’s domestic ranking, a Hungarian referee’s assessment is entirely independent of performance in any international match; the latter is the jurisdiction of UEFA and FIFA. The MLSZ Referees Committee assesses referees solely based on their performances in league matches in the OTP Bank Liga. In all 198 domestic league matches, referee assessors rate the performance of referees; this includes all assistants as well as the main referee. These professional ratings are averaged across all performances and form the basis for the ranking of each individual referee. Only the impartial analysis of domestic performance is used to determine the final rankings. As a consequence, the MLSZ Referees Committee cannot protect, help, or hinder any individual referee, as this “special treatment” would add undesirable personal emotion into a purely professional rating process. Referees can only improve their professional ranking by being rewarded with high marks for high quality performances in matches. In summary, the World Cup appearance of the highest-ranked Hungarian referees is not down to their MLSZ ranking, but instead the decision of the FIFA referees committee, who presumably base this on referees’ international performance. The MLSZ is sorry that there will be no Hungarian referee present at the 2018 World Cup, but it considers a more important, in fact the most important, task to improve the quality of domestic football and youth development.”

      Delete
    3. Overall let me tell you the lady who has written this article is a friend of Viktor Kassai... Certain things are over exaggerated... Kassai current form and poor performance means he's just not suitable for the World Cup... There's no other excuse his friends can offer... Performances are simply not at an acceptable level!!

      Delete
    4. The article has many valid points. Kassai was left out of the 2014 WC not for performance reasons. That was the first hit. Many others have followed.

      @Soham

      Current form is ok but World class is permanent.

      Delete
    5. If you ask me he was a very good referee no doubt... But sorry to say if we consider his overall career he is not world class and after 2011 his career has only gone downwards... I've seen him crumble under pressure in countless big matches and that's not world class... Based on good performances in 2010-11 we can't take him for a WC in 2017

      Delete
    6. Well, that article may have some truth on it regarding Vad. As Gitzlo said, it is strange that Vad is appointed for such unimportant game. It could be a clear message from UEFA to the Hungarian FA.

      Delete
    7. I heard the same thing from a colleague. Each association submits a ranking to UEFA and they had the referees in the exact opposite positions to their FIFA standings. Kassai 6th, Vad 5th...

      Delete
    8. This comment has been removed by the author.

      Delete
    9. Dear Soham! And dear Everybody!

      You are judging things and making predictions and assumptions without knowing anyting. (Usually you do that....) The guy who wrote this article is a fan on Kassai. Just as you are fan of Kuipers. And I think even though it makes comments less credible, there is no problem with that.

      But there are many correct things in this report. The Hungarian Referee Committee is really not supporting its best referees. Which can also clearly influence their performance.
      Sándor Puhl showed that he is incompetent and an arrogant leader who will never allow for somebody to become a better referee than him and reach the same results as he did. In the last few years he took many bad decisions and you can see the Hungarian referees don't have a strong reputation in these times. Kassai and Vad get almost meaningless appointments. Bognár is the only referee who get significant games but he will probably not reach more than 1st category. And we have nobody after them...
      It's an interesting fact for you, our newest FIFA referee from last year Ferenc Karakó became a FIFA-referee, even though he was a referee in the second leauge. So he was pushed to the first league, so he can can get the FIFA-badge. The reason is simple, there were nobody in the first league who could take the place of Mihály Fábián on the FIFA-list. So do you think that's a professional solution? They never think about the future.
      They trust in the old referees who are not FIFA, but they are good friends with them. Zoltán Iványi failed the fitness tests several times, but he is still in the top league and refereeing the biggest clashes. Just like last weekend Ferencváros-Videoton or 3 weeks ago Újpest-Ferencváros.
      So there are many huge problem in Hungary, and until Puhl is in charge of the committee, nothing will change. And probably for many years you will not find a Hungarian referee in the top European games. Also other federations and the UEFA don't have a good opinion about him which results in really poor sport diplomacy.
      I don't want to be really pessimistic, but even though Hungarian refereeing has great traditions and big names in the past...the future is very dark now...

      Delete
    10. Hi @TheRef... First of all the article is written by a lady whom I have spoken to personally on several occasions and she is personally a friend of Viktor Kassai as well but that's no problem of course... Second is I've not made any predictions or assumptions at all and I've stated a fact... I've nothing to refute about the state of Hungarian refereeing and neither do I disagree with the problems mentioned with my very limited knowledge about it... My point was that the tone of the article was such as if Kassai has been completely victimised which I don't agree... Yes there might be these things but a major reason of Kassai not going to World Cup is his own really poor performances in Real - Bayern and then Turkey - Croatia... Other than domestic problems, Kassai's absence from the World Cup is also down to his own poor showings on the big stage when he had opportunities to seal a berth so not the entire responsibility lies with the Hungarian federation but also with Kassai himself for messing things up in the international scene... That's my point really and nothing like I'm saying the article reports wrong stuffs... I would rather say it's a good article but with a rather biased tone... Kassai simply couldn't make most of the opportunities given to him and the kind of performances he gave the previous season the best place in June is in the sofa in front of the TV set!!

      Delete
    11. Well this is the original source: http://www.hungarianfootball.com/2017/11/viktor-kassai-and-the-secretive-world-of-the-mlsz-refereeing-department/

      But doesn't matter who wrote this article. And I agree his performance recenlty was far from his best. But if somebody would like to understand the whole situation, it's worth to look behind the scenes a little bit.
      Even though using words like "the best place in June is in the sofa in front of the TV set!!" it's more than harsh on somebody who proved several occasions his excellence. (Still I agree his performance was not the best recently, but we talk about a referee who was able to handle CL-final, World Cup semifinal, Olimpics final and many big clashes...so let's give him a little bit more respect)

      Delete
    12. It's not disrespect... It's just being honest my friend whether you like it or not... I say the same for Jonas Eriksson... Past is past, what they did in 2010 shouldn't have a bearing on selections in 2017... For all that they have achieved they have the full respect for that but currently as I said the best place in June is indeed the sofa in front of the TV... Stark reality my friend that's it!!

      Delete
    13. I only wish Kassai had the same backing as Lahoz, Mazic or Kuipers.

      Delete
    14. It's the backing because of which he got to the Euro 2016... For any other referee it would've been over after 2014... Kassai was a good referee and deservedly got his share of backing from Collina throughout his career... But they gave him way too much very early and that is one reason for the decline in Kassai's performances... He got his share of opportunities again and again after disastrous performances but don't think he should get more now... It's time to look into the future rather than Kassai or Eriksson currently!!

      Delete
    15. It's obvious that you follow UEFA refereeing too little to know the whole story. So, subject closed here.

      Delete
    16. As you wish... My discussion anyway wasn't with you... At the end of the day I just applaud the FIFA referee's committee for an excellent selection and leaving out underperforming so-called big hitters and choosing only those who deserve it!!

      Delete
    17. I just wish that this WC is better in terms of refereeing than the 2002 or 2014 one.

      Delete
  16. OT:

    2 VAR decisions in Belgium this weekend: http://www.belgianfootball.be/nl/nieuws/var-speeldag-17-jupiler-pro-league

    ReplyDelete
  17. f 5 I agree on everything except one. Pitana is by far much better than Kuipers. Pitana is on a completely different level and has a leadership that has not been seen before. My opinion.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. And I totally disagree... Pitana is a very good referee but Kuipers, Çakir and all such names are a class ahead of all current South American referees... My opinion just!! :)

      Delete
    2. Is it really necessary to make a ranking and decide who is better between Kuipers and Pitana? I think they have both proved to be very reliable, even in hot games, and they will surely get important appointments in the next WC. But then, is there really an answer to "who is better"? Every game adds up as a new piece in the career, the so called "ranking" changes every week and - as we know - judgements are always very subjective. Plus, comparing referees that hardly get the same teams and nations (which only happens at WC or other FIFA games) makes it even harder to compare them.

      In terms of appointments at the WC I expect Kuipers to get to the final stages, also considered the absence of the Netherlands, whereas for Pitana Argentina might get him stuck to a round of 16 or another QF.

      Delete
    3. Osborne is the sensible person out here and I agree with his views more than mine now :D
      Coming to WC, both Pitana and Kuipers can be stuck because of Argentina and Belgium respectively... If Belgium plays a Semi-final can Kuipers referee the other semi-final??

      Delete
  18. UEFA referee commitiee member Bo Karlsson has resigned as cheif for the swedish referees. That’s because of an thing that happened about 30 years ago connected to the metoo campaign.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Can you please tell more? Problems with Fandel in Germany, now Karlsson, all com member... who is next....

      Delete
    2. Karlsson is accused of saying inappropriate things(sexual character) to an 30 years younger promising female referee. This happend about2 20 years ago on cruise where referees and other people with the football association in Sweden had an start up meeting. The incident happened at night time and alcohol was involved. Karlsson says that he doesn’t remember anything from that night but steps a side because he thinks that the trust for him as head if swedish referees i lost. The female referee stoped refereeing about an year later.

      Delete
    3. I was just thinking, with Damkovà he was (is?) responsible for Women's Refereeing in UEFA's refcom.
      I am not suggesting anything, just sth to be remarked.

      Delete
  19. Hi. Someone knows who will be the referee of the Club World Cup?

    Pachuca - Wydad and Al Jazira - Urawa Reds

    ReplyDelete
  20. Pachuca-Wydad: Irmatov, Rasulov, Saidov (UZB), Conger (NZL), VARs: Geiger (USA), Lount (NZL), Zwayer (GER)
    Al Jazira-Urawa: Ramos, Torrentera, Hernandez (MEX), Brych (GER), VARs: Vigliano (ARG), Borsch (GER), Cunha (URU)

    Expected appointments. Normally, Brych and Ricci should now get the SFs and Conger the 5th place match.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, always the same appointments by FIFA.
      I think we can expect either Irmatov or Ramos for the final, it will depend also on the teams involved.

      Delete
    2. Will be a 3rd CWC final for Irmatov in that case... I would prefer Ramos... Or even Conger or Diedhiou!!

      Delete
  21. Does anyone know what happened to DutchRef's Vimeo Account? It seems all his videos have disappeared.

    ReplyDelete
  22. Istanbul Basaksehir - Braga: incredible offside missed by AR2.
    Crucial mistake.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That God that didn't affect qualifications... Basaksehir is still eliminated... Incredible that the 2 teams who played in CL playoffs are eliminated and the other 2 have qualified from that group!!

      Delete
    2. Penalty for 2-1 to Turkish side was doubtful as well.
      Many things to be reviewed in Beaton's game.

      Delete
  23. Excellent decision by Gözübüyük: RC for SFP to a player from Sheriff.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Excellent game Gozbuyuk and excellent red card.

      Delete
  24. Orel Grinfeld has issued a RC to a player from Ludogorets... Is anyone watching the match to comment?? 🤔

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. 83': Keșerü (Ludogorets) is shown the red card.
      The referee shows the Ludogorets substitute a straight red for a foul in midfield.

      Delete
    2. Correct decision by Orel?? 🤔

      Delete
    3. It was for violent conduct (kicking after the ball was gone). Correct decision, probably "prophesied" by Mozes.

      Delete
    4. Good to hear that it's a correct call made by him after being promoted to Category 1... He's really a very good talent :)

      Delete
    5. I don't think that call will be loved by committee nowadays. No excessive force. Clearly reckless, IMO, although I'm a fan of sending offs in such situations.

      Delete
    6. You are probably right there.
      There was also a missed handball outside the box by the GK (60', AR1 responsability), borderline between SPA and DOGSO, and a missed handball before the 1-1 (62', AAR2 might have helped).
      https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lLwTGUtzwUg (probably geo-blocked)

      Delete
    7. Indeed your link is not available there, Philipp.
      Any chance to get the videos of these two incidents?
      Or at least only the RC? It would be interesting, thanks in any case.

      Delete
    8. RC: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ekGL8mQbWb0

      Delete
    9. Thanks, still not clear, but very likely a crucial mistake.

      Delete
  25. 29': crucial mistake in Buquet's game. A very important goal scored by Athletic was wrongly disallowed by AR1. Situation was difficult to read, there was one player offside but the one who got the ball was clearly onside. This is one of the most important games today... a pity, it shouldn't have happened.

    ReplyDelete
  26. Probably wrongly disallowed goal in Zorya-Athletic by AR1.

    ReplyDelete
  27. Some difficult situations but all good calls from Paweł Gil and Co. A very good performance by Piotr Lasyk (AAR2), too.

    Penalty appeal - handball
    https://streamable.com/ym1mi

    Penalty to Partizan
    https://streamable.com/swxzp

    FK or PK, great advice from AAR2, missed YC for dissent?
    https://streamable.com/rwnxt

    Penalty incident
    https://streamable.com/em8o0

    Penalty to Dynamo
    https://streamable.com/vlwlm

    Let me say, Morozyuk (Dynamo) and Everton (Partizan) were lucky to not be sent off for dissent while being already booked. Maybe they didn't cross the line and their dissents were 'acceptable', but constant bad behaviour from both players through the whole match.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. 10': no penalty in my opinion, correct by referee
      45'+3: clear penalty, good call
      47': free kick and here full responsibility to AAR2, excellent call, but missed YC for a too aggressive protest against the same official
      55': no penalty for me, but I needed to watch it several times, it was just the attacker who caused the contact, without a significant challenge by keeper... another very good assessment by AAR2
      75': Penalty, correct, tackle was not on the ball.
      Very good performance by the Polish crew there.

      Delete
  28. Brief report from very important match Robert Madden handled in very, very hot and tensed atmosphere in Belgrade where Crvena zvezda beat 1FC Koln and passed through: He was excellent, and besides that always accepted, extremely good management, nice talking with players... I've never seen such Madden. Ok, he didn't want to give second YC for Koln's captain several minutes before the end of the match (his hand was already on his pocket, but decide that the tackle is not worthy of second YC - I think good tactical decision).
    AR1 with one significant, but not crucial offside decision mistake in 50. minute. Everything else went ok.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Agreed, Madden was very convincing I can't really add more to your commentary; the best performance I've ever seen from the Scottish.

      Delete
  29. OT

    Hello everyone

    I have a question for all readers of the blog.

    What are the best referee performances of the last 5-10 years for you? If you have reasons why then even better! It Can be in any competition.
    One for me that stands out is Howard Webb in Champions League 2014 Quarterfinal Second leg Atletico Madrid vs Barcelona, he did an excellent job in a very difficult match.

    I am just trying to collect some of the greatest referee performances of the last 10 years.

    Thanks to all who respond

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. With regard to the difficulty of the game and number of crucial decisions to take, I can mention Brazil-Netherlands in 2010 WC, Nishimura took countless decisions correctly. However, I don't know if it can be considered as "one of the best performances of the last 10 years".

      Other well managed clashes I remember might be Argentina-Germany (Irmatov WC 2010), France-Brazil (Cantalejo WC 2006), and both Italy-Germany in 2006 (WC Archundia) and 2016 (Euro, Kassai).
      And I seem to recall Webb got the best mark of the competition for 2014 WC in the blog with Chile-Brazil (8.6 or so).

      As for Champions league, great performances for Clattenburg, Kuipers and Cakir in the delicate Madrid derbys we had in the last years should be mentioned.

      Then of course it depends on how you balance the difficulty of the game with the quality of the decisions taken, and the personality of the referee.

      Do you agree?

      Delete
    2. There was one Milorad Mazic game in UEL really well managed... Probably in Turkey that was... I don't remember the exact game but it deserves a special mention!!

      Delete
    3. It was the quarterfinal (second leg) Beşiktaş - O. Lyonnais. An excellent performance, but after that for him, "only" appointment as fourth official for CL final.

      Delete
    4. Besiktas v Lyon I remember was in last season... But another one I'm talking about was back in 2013 maybe involving either Fenerbahce or Galatasaray!!

      Delete
    5. Off Topic

      http://worldreferee.com/site/referees.php

      Did you saw this article? :)

      Delete
    6. For those who remember, PLC had an excellent performance on the 2002 WC final. Brazil - Germany 2-0.

      Moreover I can mention Webb on the Atletico - Barcelona match.

      Delete
    7. Is there any basis of such a ranking?

      Delete
    8. I think it's based on visitors marks

      Delete
    9. I have quite an extensive list, maybe I can help :-)

      If you are talking about WC, most of the great performances have been mentioned but I'd add
      United States - Italy, Larrionda
      Slovakia - Italy, Webb

      For EURO, I only really saw one absolutely remarkable performance
      Turkey - Czech Republic, Fröjdfeldt

      At Champions League, in the last years any matches involving Atletico are worth looking at
      Vs Barcelona, Webb (the best refereeing I ever saw)
      Vs Real Madrid, Kuipers
      Vs Real Madrid, Brych
      Vs Real Madrid, Clattenburg
      Vs Real Madrid, Çakir

      Also some CL Semifinal matches that were very hard and needed top performances
      Real Madrid - Dortmund, Webb
      Barcelona - Chelsea, Çakir
      Real Madrid - Barcelona, Stark
      Chelsea - Liverpool, Rosetti
      Manchester United - Barcelona, Fandel

      Some 'only' very good performances in CL
      Barcelona - Bayern, Rizzoli
      Barcelona - Paris, Kuipers
      Barcelona - AC Milan, Kassai
      Chelsea - Benfica, Skomina
      Manchester United - Chelsea, Benquerença
      Arsenal - Barcelona, Rizzoli
      Manchester United - Bayern, Rizzoli
      Barcelona - Manchester United, Busacca

      At EL we can always expect great performances by Mazic, of course Fenerbahce - Benfica. Also
      Sevilla - Athletic, Skomina (he was really great, much underrated performance, it got him EL and CL SF)
      Dnipro - Napoli, Mazic
      Valencia - Sevilla, Mazic
      Benfica - Fenerbahce, Lannoy
      Fenerbahce - Lazio, Collum
      Liverpool - Atletico, Hauge

      Talking about smaller (continental) championships, the best matches I can remember
      Tunisia - Algeria, Camille
      Gabon - Morroco, Gassama
      United States - Jamaica, Montero
      Honduras - Mexico 2011, Lopez
      Brazil - Paraguay, Pezzotta & Cunha
      Argentina - Colombia, Garcia Orozco
      Brazil Olympic - Iraq, Hategan

      In WC/EURO Qualification, I can remember these
      Turkey - Switzerland, De Bleeckere
      Algeria - Egypt, Maillet
      Serbia - Croatia, Brych
      Slovenia - Ukraine, Çakir

      At domestic competitions, some impressions (maybe other users could help)

      Arsenal - Manchester United 2005, Poll
      Dortmund - Hoffenhiem Last Day 2013, Frees
      Sevilla - Barcelona Copa Final, Del Certo Grande
      Rangers - Celtic Scottish Cup 2011 First Match, Murray

      Did I miss any?
      If you want more just mail me
      MikaelTheReferee@gmail.com

      Delete
    10. *Drees, rather than "Frees"

      Osborne also makes a perfect point, I think there is a range at least in that list ^

      Delete
    11. England v Italy WC 2014 was good for Kuipers and Brazil v Mexico was good for Çakir
      Pitana had one excellent game in 2014 group stage I don't remember the exact match
      Then in that edition Webb in Brazil v Chile was also good
      Kuipers in Colombia v Uruguay and Pitana in France v Germany impressed

      Delete
    12. This one will always stand out for me: Turkey - Switzerland, De Bleeckere

      Amazing and gutsy performance in one of the toughest environments in the world. Of course, it falls just outside the 10 year window!

      Delete
    13. Feel Free to extend your window if the performance deserves to be mentioned!

      If anyone wants to watch any of these games you can probably find them on this website, you just need to sign up for free.

      http://footballia.net/

      Delete
    14. I know main theme here is the best refereeing performance,but if I can mention to me the most noticeable performance in last 10+ years,then I'd have to say Valentin Ivanov and Battle of Nuremberg,match between Portugal and Netherlands.

      Delete
  30. @Osborne - Yes i agree with you completely

    @Mikael - Thanks so much!

    ReplyDelete
  31. Huge controversy. What do you think?

    https://streamable.com/5al5v

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Defender is allowed to stretch his leg there to play the ball. Because he gets the ball and the tackle is not reckless at all, no penalty for me.

      Delete
    2. First, question for RayHD, why this is huge controversy? :)
      In media or something else?

      51% penalty, 49% play on...
      For sure it's much easier and safer option to whistle the penalty but I fully accept referee's decision to play on.

      It's clear that defender played the ball first, but how important is quality of the touch???
      What do you think?

      Delete
    3. Definitely not a penalty, in my opinion. It is the attacker who goes toward the defender, looking for the contact.

      Delete
    4. @DrMr - Lechia fans are furious at him. Even more after that decision against them in one of the previous matchdays
      https://streamable.com/o5s5c

      I am more against the penalty but would it be a mistake to award it? I think VAR shouldn't intervene in such cases (and that was the case yesterday).

      Delete
    5. After watching replay again and again, I change my decision, no penalty.

      Delete
  32. I can also offer a situation from Bundesliga:
    https://www2.pic-upload.de/img/34437791/ezgif.com-video-to-gif236.gif
    Aytekin showed YC and VAR did not intervene.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Don't you think there is too much relativism in football nowadays comparing to what we had three, four years ago? Almost everything is deemed as a grey area and calls are expected to be at referee's discretion. My feeling is that we have too much management instead of applying the LoTG these times. Players too often have a feeling of impunity. More balanced approach would be warmly welcomed by me. Just an opinion.

      Delete
    2. Clear RC. I can't understand why VAR did not intervene.

      Delete
  33. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YpuCSAc5_Mo
    3:50, penalty??
    Ref Srdjan Jovanovic

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, penalty. Careless foul by running too close to the attacker who had won the position. DOGSO? In case of DOGSO, was it a genuine attempt to play the ball?

      Delete
  34. Premier League
    Matchday 16

    Saturday 9 December

    12:30 West Ham v Chelsea
    Referee: Anthony Taylor
    Assistants: Peter Kirkup, Stuart Burt
    Fourth official: Graham Scott

    Burnley v Watford
    Referee: Lee Probert
    Assistants: Simon Beck, Andy Garratt
    Fourth official: Andre Marriner

    Crystal Palace v AFC Bournemouth
    Referee: Kevin Friend
    Assistants: Ian Hussin, Derek Eaton
    Fourth official: Oliver Langford

    Huddersfield v Brighton
    Referee: Stuart Attwell
    Assistants: Eddie Smart, Andy Halliday
    Fourth official: Mike Jones

    Swansea v West Brom
    Referee: Mike Dean
    Assistants: Simon Long, Daniel Cook
    Fourth official: John Brooks

    Spurs v Stoke City
    Referee: Roger East
    Assistants: Adrian Holmes, Mick McDonough
    Fourth official: Paul Tierney

    17:30 Newcastle v Leicester
    Referee: Neil Swarbrick
    Assistants: Harry Lennard, Richard West
    Fourth official: Lee Mason

    Sunday 10 December

    12:00 Southampton v Arsenal
    Referee: Bobby Madley
    Assistants: Stephen Child, Marc Perry
    Fourth official: Graham Scott

    14:15 Liverpool v Everton
    Referee: Craig Pawson
    Assistants: Lee Betts, Adam Nunn
    Fourth official: Martin Atkinson

    16:30 Man Utd v Man City
    Referee: Michael Oliver
    Assistants: Scott Ledger, Simon Bennett
    Fourth official: Jonathan Moss

    Oliver with the top match of the season, Pawson gets the Merseyside Derby and shows his good form/potential, quite hot London clash for Taylor.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Question for readers from England, how John Brooks (AR) can be 4th official?

      I googled and saw some pictures where he is main referee, not AR. Also I find out that some ex Fifa ARs are now referees in Championship. How often that happens?

      Plus, now I know that Bobby Madley have brother Andrew, also a ref :)

      Delete
    2. Indeed it seems as many Premier League assistant referees decide to turn their role into referees. I remember, among others, Darren England, who got the FIFA badge as assistant referee some years ago, then after that he became referee. And now, John Brooks. I remember an excellent performance by him in a game in Greece (PAOK 's home) with Anthony Taylor, I observed that game. It is a pity because they reach a very top level and then they suddenly change role, having to leave FIFA list and starting from a lower national division...

      Delete
    3. My God... 27 years old, he was FIFA AR and than became referee.
      Perhaps he achieved goals as AR and now he wants new challenges.

      Delete
  35. Both Brooks and England are going well as referees, I would expect both to get to Premier League.
    Peter Walton, Graham Barber and Rob Harris (for the older readers) all progessed from FIFA assistants to Premier League referees (Barber made FIFA middle)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks for the answer!

      As very young referee, Brooks has a lot of time to get FIFA badge.
      After that I can imagine him becoming basketball/rugby referee :)

      Delete
    2. How it's possible to be FIFA AR with 24-25 years in such a big FA like England?

      Delete
  36. Davide Massa in Slavia Praha - Astana.
    It was in my opinion a quite challenging game for the Italian referee, with some more than crucial decisions to be taken, especially in the last minutes of second half. Overall, I think he did well, with of course some areas for improvement. I think he can be backed regarding all the crucial incidents, but there is a very important one decision which can be very controversial (80').

    VERY CRUCIAL DECISIONS
    38' The goal that has decided the game. Free kick reported by AR2 Tegoni. Then, offside assessment: AR raised the flag because he thought that the touch before the goal scored had been by a teammate, very good cooperation with referee in changing decision. On the free kick, all Astana players were onside, then there was only the touch (by hand) by defender, so regular goal. It would be nice to know whether, according to your opinion, the handball would have been punishable, in case that a goal wouldn't have been scored.
    https://streamable.com/rp9jh

    80' Penalty appeal by Slavia. That's more than interesting. Surely the contact existed and the player from Astana took a big risk there, but was that enough for a so important whistle? I think the contact was really soft and of course player from home-team tried to make it bigger. In any case, I think penalty would have been a correct choice, but referee had all his reasons to play on. What do you think?
    https://streamable.com/u5r91

    90'+5 Second penalty appeal by Slavia, in this case I must say that added time had been correctly extended because there was an injury and then after that a substitution, about 2 minutes were wasted. So, this was the final act of the game. Replay doesn't help us, but according to the live scene, we can absolutely think that referee was right. Simulation, or, at least, no penalty.
    https://streamable.com/sk4t8

    OTHER STUFF
    10' First significant challenge of the game - a warning is issued.
    https://streamable.com/c6tpe

    13' Management of head injury - a quick reaction would have been more appropriate.
    https://streamable.com/3prpy

    19' Referee is just unlucky - he stops the execution of a corner kick in order to give warning to Astana players, but then Slavia scores. In any case, impossible to criticize on that, because gama had been stopped and some players knew that.
    https://streamable.com/higef

    33' "Minor" penalty appeal by Astana, no replay, however in my opinion clearly nothing there.
    https://streamable.com/a6gq5

    42' First YC of the game, a big doubt: was the ball outside the pitch when the foul occurred? impossible to say, in that case, free kick shouldn't have been executed, only disciplinary sanction to be issued, stuff for AR2.
    https://streamable.com/qumy5

    47' Careless or reckless tackle? I would have liked YC there.
    https://streamable.com/gkmk0

    53' YC - broadcaster misses the incident live - correct decision by referee
    https://streamable.com/c8ay1

    83' YC for holding - Correct
    https://streamable.com/um4n2

    86' Possible second YC for SPA, I think supportable to whistle only the foul.
    https://streamable.com/er347

    88' YC for dissenting behavior
    https://streamable.com/bq72g

    In addition (I didn't make a video), keeper from Astana was booked for time wasting. Broadcaster didn't show the entire sequence (there were replays).

    ReplyDelete
  37. I saw in the match Monchengladbach - Schalke 04 (Ref: Sascha Stegeman) 2 VAR moments in the last minutens of the first half.

    VAR sit.1 (min.39): Offside call given by the AR after Mon scores a goal. The VAR intervents and disallowed the goal.

    VAR sit.2 (min 43): Stegeman gave a PK, good call. The Schalke players want a VAR intervention for a foul some seconds before the penalty-situation. Stegeman takes a on-field look. After that he gave a free kick to Schalke for the Caliguri/Wendt situation. Does someone have some videos?
    IMO the first VAR intervention is supportable, but the second situation is discussable. What are the rules in this case?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I heard: The VAR can intervent when there is a foul in the seconds before the keymoment

      Delete
    2. VAR can intervene when there is a CLEAR foul in the action leading to a goal. However, it must be in a way clearly related to the outcome. Waiting for a video.

      Delete
    3. http://voetbaltube.com/goals/duitsland/samenvatting-borussia-mgladbach-schalke-04-1-1-doelpunt-kramer

      Here a video of the match. The PK/VAR situation starts around 0:45. Have a look and give your opinion

      Delete
    4. Not a clear offensive foul for my taste. Therefore, unnecessary VAR intervention.

      Delete
    5. Yes, I agree, not an obvious mistake.
      There were also discussions, whether the situation should be considered at all for the penalty check, but I think, this was at least correct.

      Situation 1 was quite interesting. Decision for offside by AR1 immediately after the goal. This offside decision for the final pass was actually wrong, but the VAR detected another offside situation in the same attack and therefore confirmed to disallow the goal.
      So I think, good work by the VAR there.
      https://www2.pic-upload.de/img/34443993/ezgif.com-video-to-gif245.gif
      https://www2.pic-upload.de/img/34443973/Bild_2017_12_09_23_45_42_331.png
      https://www2.pic-upload.de/img/34443972/Bild_2017_12_09_23_45_25_978.png

      Delete
  38. Predictions CWC semifinals:

    Gremio - Pachuca
    Felix Brych (GER)

    Al Jazira - Real Madrid
    Sandro Ricci (BRA)

    ReplyDelete
  39. My Predictions :

    5th place : Matt Conger
    3rd place : Ravshan Irmatov
    Final : Cesar Ramos (if Pachuca is eliminated in SF / Malang Diedhiou (if Pachuca is in Final)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The Predictions for the 2 SFs are absolutely same as Chefren!!

      Delete

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