FIFA has appointed the officials in charge of 2023 Under 17 World Cup Final and Third Place Game.
The 35 years old from Norway will referee the final game between Germany and France in Surakarta on 2 December. Fu Ming (CHN) will referee the Third Place game.
2 December 2023
13:00 CET - Surakarta (Stadion Manahan)
GERMANY - FRANCE
Referee: Espen Andreas Eskås NOR
Assistant Referee 1: Jan Erik Engan NOR
Assistant Referee 2: Isaak Elias Skjeseth Bashevkin NOR
Fourth Official: Dahane Beida MTN
Reserve Assistant Referee: Koffi Jonathan Ahonto TOG
Video Assistant Referee: Aleandro Di Paolo ITA
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Lahlou Benbraham ALG
Support Video Assistant Referee: David Coote ENG
1 December 2023
13:00 CET - Surakarta (Stadion Manahan)
ARGENTINA - MALI
Referee: Fu Ming CHN
Assistant Referee 1: Cao Yi CHN
Assistant Referee 2: Ma Ji CHN
Fourth Official: Umar Muhammad Ahmad Hassan Al-Ali UAE
Reserve Assistant Referee: Said Rashid Muhammad Abdullah Al-Marzouqi UAE
Video Assistant Referee: Rob Dieperink NED
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Katherine Margaret Jacewicz AUS
Support Video Assistant Referee: Joseph Dickerson USA
So he is on Pole position for Elite. U21 final + FIFA WC17 final. Good year! Well done.
ReplyDeleteHis management skills are top elite already.
DeleteCongratulations to all selected officials!
It is a U-17 tournament, a joy to watch, but even at a 'kids'-tournament, the appointments are quite anticipated/staged and you can read the politics between the lines everywhere. And I'm not talking about the appointment of the Norwegian. :)
ReplyDeleteI already predicted before the 1st game that the Italian VAR would get the final and that others, no matter how good they are, didn't stand a chance. With all the respect, it is unclear to me why they would invest so much in a 46-year-old VAR, who isn't even the #1 in his own country, with at least Irrati and Valeri ahead of him. One thing that is also striking is that Aleandro Di Paolo has almost exclusively worked with European referees. He was Pinheiro's VAR in his first 3 games, which is remarkable. Others have switched regularly. This could indicate that FIFA on beforehand had gambled/anticipated that the Portuguese would be a major contender. To shift the focus to Eskas after the group stage...
On the other hand, there is Rob Dieperink, a very talented VAR and given his collaboration with Makkelie, he can be qualified as #1 VAR in Holland now (and therefore will work at the European Championships). It would make more sense to me to invest in him instead of Di Paolo. However in Indonesia, Dieperink has worked with referees who, given their level, didn't have a chance to reach the final before the first kick-off:
-Chavarría (HON), Al-Ali (UAE) 2x, Atcho (GAB)
The same applies to other VARs from small countries.
It was clear that Fedayi San (SUI), after being the head-VAR at the FIFA U-20 final, would not fulfil that role again. The highest achievable for him is a semi-final and he got that from Busacca.
The VAR-roles look very anticipated and decided in advantage IMO. Not the most fair strategy IMO.
Great to see the development Dieperink is making as VAR. He’s extremely talented in this role and is progressing rapidly, especially now he’s working with Makkelie. Domestically, they’ve officiated many top matches together, always with success. Certainly, he will become Makkelie’s number one VAR for future UCL, EURO and WC matches. Clearly Van Boekel is out of sight and even Gozubuyuk is currently choosing for Higler.
ReplyDeleteIf I'm not mistaken, Makkelie is also Dieperink's mentor for VAR role?
DeleteThat’s indeed correct. It must be said, Makkelie has eye for talent. He sees this not only in Jan de Vries and Rob Dieperink, but almost all referees he has coached in the Netherlands have made it to a permanent contract. He’s also the coach of Marc Nagtegaal who will become FIFA referee in January 2024. But all could also be a coincidence.
DeleteCorrect 2YC, well done Eskås!
ReplyDeleteShould also probably comment on the penalty and OFR in the first half as no one else has. Correct recommendation by Di Paolo and final decision by Eskås, French defender only kicks the player and not the ball. There was also a discussion about deliberate play, or controlled play as I think it should be called, before which was the reason the OFR took about of time. I think they got that right in the end, deliberate play and reset of offside, as the ball was completely expected and the defender had time and space to coordinate his movement
DeletePenalty for kicking [OFR]:
Deletehttps://streamable.com/6i15gt
Both YCs Osawe GER:
https://streamable.com/taxtpn
https://streamable.com/sbo3by
Both yellow cards fully correct.
DeleteWell done about the OFR as well, this time we can understand why it took so long. Very detailed analysis of the foul at first (clear foul) and then deliberate play or not. Here I'm glad that once we see a deliberate play decision, in recent times we have always seen deflection as final verdict.
The deliberate play is borderline IMO, because the player was under pressure by his opponent.
DeleteWhen will be a nominations for euro 2024?
ReplyDeleteI think in April
DeleteThoughts on Hooper's performance in City vs Spurs?
ReplyDeleteLooks like he made another crucial mistake.
Talking stricltly about the 90+4 incident, it was clearly a mistake. I don't really understand how did Hooper judged the moment because initially he let advantage. I don't understand what possibly made him whistle. It could have been a great advantage. Interesting when camera was moved second later on Guardiola and Taylor who was 4th official, the former had a poker face, no gestures and kept his hands in his pockets, like saying "yeah, it was a mistake, I don't understand his decision, sorry"
DeleteHis performance was very good up until the "incident", I can only assume he thought Grealish was offside and hence brought it back. Pretty faultless apart from that but his performance will be remembered for that one moment, just goes to show you need to be fully concentrated until the final whistle
DeleteNo where near offside. Another blooper for Hooper- third game with crucial mistakes from him. He also allowed far too much mobbing from the Man City players
DeleteHe was very good up until that moment. There are several reasons why he might have blown/not realised the attack city had but ultimately its a mistake that just about every referee has made before
Delete** Sorry for my mistake above, I just re-read my comment, obviously it was Taylor with the poker face, the latter (not the former).
DeleteI also think he was very good up until that unfortunate blunder, which denied City a very, very promising chance, or to be specific, an OGSO (at least for me). Very unfortunate for both Hooper and Man City, it looked terrible, to be honest. However, Ecosse is right, this is a mistake that happens to everyone at least once. Unfortunately, Hooper made one on the big stage.
DeleteAs for the possible cause, I also think there was an error of judgement from both Hooper and AR2, they probably thought Grealish was offside, because Hooper clearly indicated an advantage before whistling. However, it was evidently onside, unfortunately.
I have to say I'm really sorry for him, he had a good game with many correct assessments and he even managed to properly evaluate some PAI's after his blunder, which required a fair amount of mental strength (to regain his composure and concentration after some very strong protests and mobbing from Man City players).
I Have never seen a referee play the advantage realise they where in on goal and stop it.
DeleteThey can't think it was offside. If they did then they flag it but they should have delayed anyway
DeleteOf course you're right, they absolutely had to delay, this makes it even worse. However, I'm trying to find a rational explanation for such a blunder, try to understand why it happened. Which is probably a lost cause, I'm not sure even Hooper himself can explain it properly. It's a blunder, in every meaning of the word.
DeleteHooper did a similar thing last season when he whistle for (a wrong offside from shock horror Adrian Holmes) as the attacker shot and scored rather than delay
DeleteThe only possible explanation for me is that referee thought about an offside of the player receiving the ball, so in his mind he decided better to stop play and give a foul, because advantage impossible. But there wasn't any offside and we don't see any action by AR... strong mental pressure on the refere who was very afraid of taking a wrong decision and he did a mistake.
DeleteIn my view, there’s mainly two ways for the mistake, either the AR communicated ”delaying” and the referee whistles a foul (correctly so if assuming he’s offside) but here he was clearly onside so if this is the case: a poor mistake from the assistant. The other way would be for the referee to think that the ball is not reaching its intended target and therefore to call the foul back before it could be considered ”too late” and would look like a too long of an advantage (I can imagine in his head, if he decides to show advantage and the pass doesn’t go anywhere good and then he calls the foul, there would also be some protests from Tottenham since City then basically gets the pass and the foul). In the end, it’s an unfortunate mistake that happens on all levels of refereeing, very unlucky for Hooper to have it in the last minute of an important game.
DeleteI read another theory online. What if Hooper didn't see Grealish in front? If we analise the video we can see that Hooper is looking at Haaland when he gets the ball and return with the face to the opponent goal. And even after Haaland kick the ball there are still 1-2 second when Hooper is looking in left at the Norwegian striker. After that when Hooper follows the ball it is possible that he didn't see Grealish because the City attacker, Spurs defender and the referee are almost on the same line. And after that he realised that he made a big mistake. (In his mind maybe he even though that Haaland accidentaly kicked the ball because he slipped?) Unlucky for Hooper, I wish him to come back strong because he is one of the referees that impressed me the most last season in Europe.
DeleteVery weak officiating from the referee in Barca-Atletico Madrid. Lot of acting from Atletico players as always, and referee fell on their acting many times, especially in 2nd half, giving wrong fouls and YCs for Barcelona players. Too many mistakes.
ReplyDeleteFor context: The referee was Jose Sanchez Martinez.
DeleteTalking about delayed whistles. A positive note:
ReplyDeleteMakkelie had an excellent(!) delayed whistle yesterday when Feyenoord scored 1-2.
3 out of 4 of the Dutchman's last domestic games were top games. In Ajax-PSV a few weeks ago, he signaled advantage plays before 3 goals. He is the master of advantage and flow. Confident, respected and always in control.
There are small areas for improvement in terms of foul detection, but I'm glad to see he is approaching his top level again.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WngtNaMN2Dk
Delete6:20 and 8:30. Perfect decisions before the goals
When UEFA will publish list of referees of UEFA EURO 2024?
ReplyDeleteI guess middle of February just after the Annual Winter course for Elite Referees; do you know where it will be hosted ?
DeleteRead above. Should be around April.
ReplyDeleteAustrian referee Harald Lechner ends his international career: https://sport.orf.at/stories/3119741/
ReplyDeleteA pity. Although I didn't watch all his games (of course), I think he was a safe pair of hands and should've got his UCL debut.
DeleteWould be an opportunity to appoint him for the completely meaningless UCL match Celtic - Feyenoord. Lechner would get his first and only UCL match whereas more prospective referees could handle decisive UEL games instead.
ReplyDeleteAn interesting VAR clip from serie A game Milan - Fiorentina, possible penalty for handball to be assessed.
ReplyDeleteReferee: Di Bello
VAR: Mazzoleni
https://streamff.co/v/_0-x-t943Q
I try to make a sum about the dialogue.
Di Bello field assessment: (Tutto Attaccato) "All close to body"
At first VAR asks for taking more time because the situation is "difficult". DI Bello answers "don't worry, take all the time you need".
Then, after a long analysis and you can see the different cameras used, the final assessment is play on because not clear and obvious mistake. Mazzoleni takes a big responsibility here, because this decision ggo rather against (as you can easily guess) the classic expectationf of handball in Italy. Mazzoleni thinks that the previous touch on body doesn't make it a clear and obvious mistake, despite of final touch with open arm (the arm is not in natural position). You can hear at the beginning the AVAR not really convinced about the fact that previous touch could make it not worhy of an OFR, but then VAR takes the decision with the following suffered words: "You can play, Marco". What I like to point out is that not all VARs would have taken this decision and most of them, even more because easy to do, would have sent referee to monitor. I appreciated the work that he has made in this case.
Also, we can point out that in such situations there aren't clear guidelines, because otherwise he would have applied them, but he is in doubt until the end. To follow, Rocchi's committee has officially assessed this one as grey area: if penalty, support, if play on, support as well. Some people in the TV studio were surprised, also former players, because they expected VAR to take a decision on everything, and let me be clear, I'm convinced this is the big problem of VAR nowadays, many people still don't understand and maybe will never understand the fact that if you don't have elements, you can't come to final decision as VAR, overruling referee.
Finally, you can see the difference between slow motion, and the real pace, in the latter case, during the game, Di Bello could not even have the perception of this double touch... extremely quick!
In the Netherlands there are already talks in media about a possible meeting against Portugal in the quarter-finals at the 2024 European Championship. Not in Nürnberg but Hamburg this time :)
ReplyDeleteA bit early to speculate, but looking at the schedule it is certainly possible. Maybe give Lahoz a call, if it comes to that?
Joking aside: UEFA must always appoint the best referee in that case... I dare to bet, they don't want to sacrifice Orsato.
I don't understand the joke with Antonio Mateu Lahoz. Don't you confuse him with Valentin Ivanov at the World Cup 2006?
DeleteThe joke is that Lahoz gives cards every time when he's in charge.
DeleteAltough that's not true,we have 2 examples that come to people's mind;
Barcelona derby and ARG -NED match.
And if you remember that 06 match in particular,we could say that every card Ivanov issued was justified.
We could even say that he missed some RC's but to sit here and say like Blatter that he did not have control is absurd.
When you have those 2 teams and that type of mindset how are you suposed to have match under control?
This game was something like ARG-NED 22,SPA-NED 10.
It is interesting that NED is in all matches that have most cards in WC but they are deemed as nation who tends to play beatiful and clean football.
@ Peter
DeleteYes, I know it was Ivanov, but Lahoz' performance is fresh in our minds and comparable in some way. No hate btw. ARG-NED would be sacrificial to almost all referees in Qatar. It is clear that Netherlands, Portugal and Argentina are not the easiest countries to referee, let alone when they face each other.
@M:
I watch NED football regularly and I wouldn't call the Dutch football beautiful. Technically, the players are not at top level. They compensate that with a high intensity, high pressing etc. And they have a few hotheads on the pitch that are easy to provoke.
I always have to smile when people call the Italian Serie A "demanding" to referee. Maybe from a player management perspective, but the intensity in Italy can be quite low compared to England and Holland. If we first watch Premier League or FEY-PSV and then a Serie A game, the difference in intensity is incredible. But that aside.
If NED and POR will meet again in Germany, they have to appoint Marciniak or Orsato given the history of these teams. I think Marciniak will be sacrificed in that case.
Agreeing with you cause with Marciniak they can afford to sacrifice him cause we all know that this is Orsato's Euro.
DeleteMarciniak will have another chance in 4 years.
But I dont think in any case if these 2 meet that we'll see dirty match.
Players are much well behaved than in 06.
In 06 you had hotheads like Van Bommel,Costinha,Bouhlarouz adn some others.
Also,that match was consequence of what happened in early stages of the match when Bouhlarouz injured Ronaldo so Portugal players had a little bit of revenge on their mind.
Add to that big stakes and couple of hotheads and you get 14 YC's and 4 RC's
As a rumour Turkiye's 2024 FIFA Referees are revealed. Halil Umut Meler, Atilla Karaoğlan, Abdülkadir Bitigen and Arda Kardeşler keep their badges, but Ali Palabıyık (retired), Erkan Özdamar and Yaşar Kemal Uğurlu will be replaced with Bahattin Şimşek, Kadir Sağlam and Zorbay Küçük. Interesting one is Zorbay Küçük was a FIFA Referee, he failed English Tests and he lost his badge 2 years ago. I hope they improved. Zorbay Küçük (1992) is 31 years old. We don't have public information about the other two referees ages. I believe both around 33-35 years old.
ReplyDeleteWow, if this is true, you have any idea why Özdamar will be replaced after one year with FIFA badge?
DeleteTo become a referee in Turkey, you either have to have relatives who are referees or have big politics connections. Even if you are very talented, if you are a normal person you will never become a referee. To become a FIFA referee, you need to have significant political support and especially the approval of the fenerbahçe club. In Turkey, the Football Federation (TFF) and the Referee Committee (MHK) are controlled by fenerbahçe, trabzonspor and başakşehir.
DeleteOn the other hand, the fact that the TFF wants to make Zorbay Küçük a FIFA referee again clearly shows that Turkish Football and Turkish Refereeing is over.
Zorbay Küçük is a referee who has been involved in dozens of scandals and is undergoing psychological treatment. Last week, he admitted that he did not show a red card in a position in the fenerbahçe-trabzonspor match because he was afraid of the stands. At the time, he was terminated as a FIFA referee for failing FIFA's athletic tests. Last month, in another scandal in Turkey, it was revealed that many referees had sent fake medical reports to FIFA. One can think of all sorts of other things.
@ESTref - I have no clue. He was not performing well this year but who does apart from Meler and Karaoğlan to be honest.
Delete@Unknown - you have some valid points but from your comments, I understand that you are writing completely from eyes of fan point, probably supporter of Galatasaray or Beşiktaş. Yes there is special politics of refereeing in Turkey, but it is weird to say that TFF is controlled by those teams where the chairman/president is member of Galatasaray Club. I won't blame any referee, I don't ahve proof and never heard Zorbay Küçük is having a such treatment.
DeleteTurkish Football and refereeing will become better when we stop looking from fan point.
Dear Uğur, your comments on the blog are very valuable and informative, I enjoy reading your comments. In the last European week, only 1 Turkish referee took charge in 48 matches. For a country of 85 million people this statistic is not normal. It saddens me that "football and referees" of a country with such great potential are in this state because of 3-5 criminal people.
DeleteYou know what I wrote is true. Zorbay, for example, failed the test on the rules of the game of football in the course organized by UEFA last year. He also failed the English test. And he was removed from the FIFA list.
https://www.ntvspor.net/futbol/uefa-zorbay-kucuk-un-dilini-begenmedi-6322d8cd7356261580af5f28
Zorbay did not know the rules of the game and made a serious mistake in the trabzon-besiktas match last year (the match was almost replayed).
https://ajansspor.com/haber/zorbay-kucukten-buyuk-skandal-kural-hatasi-600311
The president of fenerbahçe said that Zorbay had serious nervous problems. Toroğlu also stated that Zorbay received psychological support last year. Zorbay is also still in court with galatasaray because of the insults he said to galatasaray players and coaching staff during the match.
https://ajansspor.com/haber/ali-koc-zorbay-kucuk-hakkinda-konustu-sinir-problemi-var-futbolcularla-polemiklere-girdi-598526
Zorbay is one of those criminal personalities who is constantly rewarded despite the fact that he officiates every match very badly. Turkish football needs to be cleaned of such people first. Even if Zorbay burns down the stadium, the TFF still cannot touch him. Because some referees have very powerful backers. Among Turkish FIFA referees, I think only Halil and Abdülkadir deserve to be on the FIFA list. The others should not even officiate matches in amateur leagues. They are both untalented, uninformed and criminal.
I don't support Istanbul teams, I am an Altay fan and I live in Izmir. I know a lot about referees in Turkey as most of them are from this region. I hope we can have 3 elite referees soon. Best regards.
The problem with that comment is the word "criminal" you are continuing to use and I should delete it for that. You explained your point of view in a very detailed way and I'm convinced you don't understand the meaning that the term has, at least in other languages. If you are really convinced about what you are writing, go and denounce that, otherwise you will be responsible for your messages in front of authorities.
DeleteWho has information on when the lists of FIFA referees for 2024 will be released?
ReplyDeleteFrom next season on, former FIFA referee Knut Kircher (1CL, 17EL, U21EURO 2007) becomes new DFB head of refereeing (or technically Managing Director Sport and Communication of DFB Schiri GmbH), replacing Lutz Fröhlich, who had already announced to leave at the end of next year.
ReplyDeleteSome people expected Felix Brych to take over this role after finishing his career, so maybe a small surprise here.
DeleteHowever, Kircher's professional background is in HR management, which sounds like a good qualification (together with his referee experience) for the job. He has worked as observer since his retirement, but didn't have any specific role at DFB so far.
ReplyDeleteThe report I promised about Voĺha Blockaja BLR in Italy - Switzerland, Women's Nations League game.
BACKGROUND
Before the previous match against Spain, the situation of the group was very different, the win by Italy helped in allowing a hope for keeping the category by reaching second place. Maybe not something like a qualification to a next round, but very celebrated by Italy, because unexpected.
The context was a classic one of Women's football with a few spectators and not challenging context, in a rather fair game with players focused on football. Nevertheless, in the last minutes of second half in particular, something interesting to analyze the figure of the Belarusan referee, happened. Until that moment, I would have been in trouble to make an assessment, or at least an opinion, because too easy game and almost no challenge at all.
The first half was a bit more challenging than second half but still easy, the last minutes of the games were maybe the most challenging ones for referee due to some small incidents occurred. Nothing really extra ordinary, but watching the game, especially second half and how things had turned until then, it came absolutely unexpected. Overall I think it wasn't a performance about which you can say too much, but still... let's have a try.
12' Possible YC for SPA, OK not to give it for me.
https://streamff.co/v/KkDMj6dvbR
18' Referee corrects AR2 who had flagged for goal kick, corner was given.
https://streamff.co/v/pD_2dibBpe
Correct, better view by referee, but in such situations AR2 should wait if not sure.
19' Tight offside call by AR1 in potentially promising attack.
https://streamff.co/v/MA_qVDflZl
I think it can be offside with upper body, no question on the call.
22' Advantage, not difficult
https://streamff.co/v/EBVDve0ceN
28' Possible YC for late challenge, referee spends a warning. Extremely easy game until that moment, one can agree, watching the referee aware about the situation.
Deletehttps://streamff.co/v/fkKTpvrSM4
34' It can be a missed YC for reckless challenge, but very difficult situation to judge. Not clear how much intense this contact from behind was, and the exact point of impact, we have a small injury, but to me maximum YC, difficult to see.
https://streamff.co/v/WxNT5iQByO
41' and 43' at first an evident offside missed by AR2, no replay but live stopping the video is clear, and then a correct call two minutes later.
https://streamff.co/v/2nuZxvgf2w
https://streamff.co/v/fIPIsYOmSX
Overall, AR1 showed better display than AR2, with all correct / supportable offside calls, but AR2 apart from this wrong call was not bad, she also cooperated with referee, but she looked maybe a bit less experienced than her colleague.
At this point the game "ended" in fact, given also the score, second half definitely close to "zero incidents", I can report a good delayed whistle in 74' for a possible advantage:
https://streamff.co/v/xHNGbszl_X
But then, starting from 89', what I reported above. Swiss side started to be quite unhappy with score, and showed frustration (they had absolutely not done this before, so very strange it was concentrated only in the last few minutes....).
90' A player is hit by ball thrown before the execution of a throw-in
https://streamff.co/v/TSDgTkXbi2
Not sure who made that, so one can't judge, should come from Swiss side. Referee, according to commentator, invited the Italian player to be calm and she answered she had been hit by ball. Nevertheless, she was rather wasting a bit of time and maybe more action / presence by referee was possible. I think you can assess this as very minor incident, but a signal that something could follow after...
90'+1 Cynical foul by Switzerland close to AR1, player deliberately making contact knowing where opponent was, quick report by AR1, but I think a card should have followed.
https://streamff.co/v/e0uHmk_F3f
90'+3 YC for dissenting gesture / unsporting behavior
https://streamff.co/v/rrjzVU8gWD
This shows exactly the moment of Swiss players, very nervous before final whistle, YC issued I think for the gesture against referee, and the player didn't want to follow the instruction, but then after the caed you can see how this continues with another gesture and the player that puts again ball in different position. Absolutely not accepted, very poor management by Belarusan referee, who booked the player only because she had to do that, but she wasn't incisive. Still you can say, minor things in such a game and at the very end of it, but this can give some ideas about her style.
All in all, too easy game to make a judgement, mostly always fair, reasonable choice to keep cards, but then you have to say when the presence of referee was needed, judgment can't be maybe very positive...
who are the new FIFA referee ? there are changes ?
DeleteAnother Excellent performance from Chris Kavanagh tonight in Manchester United vs Chelsea, bar a missed penalty in the first 5 minutes which was rightly given after a great OFR call from David Coote and Sian Massey Ellis on VAR, nice and quick as well.
ReplyDeleteJohn Brooks had a good performance in the one sided Aston Villa vs Man City match.
Simon Hooper didn't impress again, no major controversy but a few decisions for Michael Oliver on VAR, potential fouls in the build up to both goals and a potential red card for a stamp.
Important to note that Hooper was supported on all those decisions. I thought he had a reasonable enough game to be honest, especially after how Sunday's match ended, he didn't seem low in confidence.
DeleteAgree on Kavanagh, he's impressed a lot recently in big games
Kavanagh is in great form imo and getting selected for big matches recently (Chelsea vs Arsenal, Man City vs Liverpool, Man United vs Chelsea) and has impressed in all 3. I thought Hooper was fine, all decisions supportable but his form this season has been poor compared to how he ended last season (non-penalty in Man United vs Wolves, Tottenham vs Liverpool fiasco, handball overturned by VAR in Aston Villa vs Fulham when actually hit defender's face and the botched advantage call in Man City vs Tottenham).
DeleteDomestic appointments:
ReplyDelete- Vinčić just works as VAR, which aligns with our assumpions that he will have PSG again;
- Michael Oliver appointed on Sunday > could be apppointed in Porto on Wednesday;
- Orsato appointed on Friday -> UCL appointment or reserve role
- Mariani on Monday; Guida could have a 3rd UCL appointment?
- Turpin and Brisard both work on Saturday
- Gil Manzano not appointed? My idea is that he will have the Napoli game, by lack of other options...
- Gozubuyuk > I expected him in UCL next week after 2 UCL appointments so far, however he has a late Sunday game -> Europa League?
- Makkelie has an early Saturday game, not a low-profile game (VAR is Dieperink) and also works as VAR himself on Sunday. Can't draw any conclusions on that.
German appointments are not released. After no German assignments in MD5, we can expect at least 2 German referees in UCL MD6.
About Italy, indeed Orsato will referee tomorrow Juventus - Napoli. Very delicate game after some protests by the latter team following Massa officiating in Napoli - Inter, but I think that he was already planned for this game (because on Friday and then with the chance to officiate in CL, indeed). It would be fourth appointment for him, but in case I wouldn't be surprised, given that he is among the top 5 UEFA referees.
DeleteAlso, interesting to point out as you did, that Guida is totally out. Would be extra ordinary to see a third CL game for Category 1, if I'm not mistaken, this never happened before because against the categories, the expected maximum number of CL GS is 2 for Cat. 1, so maybe he will rather appear in Europa League. Massa got already his third game so he shouldn't be on duty in this week (to me, hard to make a comparison with Orsato, if fourth game, I think that it will be for the latter), while Mariani working on Monday could be only in Europa League.
About the Italian teams, I still find difficult after all happened to see Gil Manzano in Napoli - Braga, but possible because minor game if compared to Galasataray - Manchester Unitd, for which he was very likely planned. We will see.
Mariani had 3 GS games in Category 1 last season, also Ekberg in 20/21 and Madden in 19/20.
DeleteFor this season, I think, Rumsas has the best chances to achieve that.
Siebert and Stieler are already appointed as VARs for Friday, so won't referee at the weekend - after both have done cup games yesterday. So fully available for Europe.
Yes, even three German referees is possible. Zwayer, Siebert and Stieler. I'm curious about Zwayer's game, after the important observation in Italy.
DeleteGil Manzano, after Sanchez officiated Galatasaray MD5, I'm not sure we can see another Spaniard in Group A (unwritten rule?). That is why I think he might have the game in Naples. After Ukraine-Italy, certainly not my preferred option to see him so soon with an Italian team again.
Orsato/Turpin/Makkelie, after a MD5 appointment, they can certainly have a reserve role. Also considering that the MD6 appointments have been released before the MD5 games were played. Of course, UEFA needs enough reserve spots in case of a last-minute absence.
- Although Orsato could be used in Group A, where a top referee is required imo.
- Turpin or Makkelie could be a sound name in Atletico-Lazio (appointment released after MD5). I assumed a battle for first place could be a nice opportunity for eg. Nyberg/Peljto, but still can be a heated game given the teams involved. Maybe committee doesn't want to take a risk and appoints Turpin or Makkelie there.
- Gozubuyuk > not easy to find a sensible UCL-game for him on Wednesday. I just see Antwerp-Barcelona as an option, but this is also suitable for a category 1. He could have sth like West Ham-Freiburg on Thursday.
If no Spanish referee "allowed" in group A, it also can't be a French one for the same reason. So probably Kovacs, Makkelie, Orsato and Zwayer are the remaining options there.
DeleteGözübüyük on Wednesday might still be an option for group F?
Oliver could be in Porto, but I am not sure his status is that high anymore based on recent appointments. So maybe Letexier, Makkelie or Turpin could be seen as safer options for this important game. The Lens and Atletico games seemed more suitable for him, but not possible with his Sunday appointment.
Athletico vs Lazio is not a suitable game for Oliver.
Delete@Philipp S, Group A, Zwayer shouldn't be there as Bayern is in the same group. I know that it doesn't effect Bayern's position but he must be one of the last choices. I would go with Orsato in Manchester and Makkelie in Copenhagen.
DeleteAny Elite Referees expected in games in EL and ECL?
ReplyDeleteIn Conference League we should absolutely expect an Elite referee in Legia - AZ Alkmaar, I wouldn't be suprised if even a top Elite one. Decisive game for qualification + the game in the Netherlands ended with huge incidents like two Legia players actually getting arrested after clashing with Dutch police.
DeleteUECL games situations:
DeleteGenk - Cukaricki: Genk needs to win and expect Ferencváros to lose to go through.
Ferencváros - Fiorentina: Quite important game, Ferencváros could either qualify straight to R16 if winning, or get knocked out if they lose and Genk win v Cukaricki, Fiorentina needs to draw to qualify for R16, they are already guaranteed to play KO stage. I expect at least an experienced First Cat here.
Aberdeen - Eintracht: Dead rubber
Fenerbahçe - Spartak Trnava: Important game, Fener needs to win to go through the GS, they could also do it by drawing and Ludogorets losing at home vs Nordsjaelland
Ludogorets - Nordsjaelland: Crucial game for both qualification and 1st place, whoever loses is getting eliminated in case of Fenerbahçe victory. I expect a 'top' First / bottom Elite here.
Zrinjski - Aston Villa: Dead rubber
PAOK - HJK: Dead rubber
Legia - AZ Alkmaar: See above, very crucial game with tense atmosphere on and off the pitch to be expected.
Dinamo Zagreb - Ballkani: Dinamo need at least a point to ensure qualifying, I think a low First or promising Second Cat should be enough.
Both Lille - KÍ & Slovan Olimpija are very similar, with Lille & Slovan already qualified and fighting for 1st place in GS in different games.
Zorya - Breidablik: Dead rubber
Maccabi Tel Aviv - Gent: Direct clash for 1st place, similar to Brugge - Bodo Glimt.
Lugano - Besiktas: Dead rubber
Brugge - Bodo Glimt: Direct clash for 1st place/R16 qualifying.
Viktoria Plzen - Astana: Unimportant, only Astana with little hopes of progressing.
UEL:
DeleteRennes - Villarreal: Direct clash for 1st place/R16
Qarabag - Häcken: Qarabag need to win to ensure access to R32, Häcken are dead last with 0 points so I wouldn't expect a big name here.
Panathinaikos - Maccabi Haifa: Both teams are eliminated from Europa League KO stage access, but still a direct clash for Conference League R32.
Saint-Gilloise - Liverpool: SG need to protect their Europa League parachute, Liverpool are already qualified for R16.
Slavia Prague - Servette & Roma - Sheriff have the same situation, Slavia & Roma fighting for 1st place (Slavia having the 'upper hand' in this case), Servette is already guaranteed UECL R32 & Sheriff is eliminated.
Leverkusen - Molde: Irrelevant game for Leverkusen whose only real motivation is to keep a perfect strike, but important game for Molde
LASK - Toulouse: LASK needs to win and hope for a SG defeat to Liverpool to go to Conference League, Toulouse is in good condition to protect their 2nd place.
Brighton - Marseille: Direct clash for 1st place
Betis - Rangers: Very important game, whoever wins gets 1st place, and the loser (Rangers in case of draw) will be in a very dangerous position as a Sparta Prague victory in Cyprus would mean elimination from EL/relegation to UECL.
Aris Limassol - Sparta Prague: Aris needs to win to have hopes for Conference League, for Sparta a victory would automatically mean qualification.
Olympiacos - Backa Topola: Clash for 3rd place/Conference parachute, for Olympiacos a draw would be enough.
Ajax - AEK: Another direct clash for 3rd place.
West Ham - Freiburg: Direct clash for 1st place, an Elite referee should be expected here.
Sporting - Sturm Graz & Raków - Atalanta are similar, irrelevant game for Sporting and Atalanta, important game for Sturm & Raków for 3rd place.
This weekend's MD of Greek Super League has been postponed after all referees decided to go on strike.
ReplyDeleteApparently Anastasios Papapetrou received wild death threats after last week's game involving Olympiacos and had to ask for police protection.
Here we go again...
And UEFA, / FIFA do nothing. By years. Is that normal?
DeleteThey should stop football in the country even for a long time, if required.
Jarred Gillett with an excellent handball spot on field to disallow a late Arsenal goal
ReplyDeleteWhat happened in Cuadra's match,famous Getafe vs Valencia derby(just look at their H2H matches).
ReplyDelete3 RC's,plenty YC's.
He had plenty work,did someone watched that match?
I didn't watch the full game (I switched between this game and Montpellier-Lens in Ligue 1), but he has correctly showed a SYC to VAL5 (reckless use of arms/SPA) and sent off two other players for insults: VAL8 after Cuadra unfortunately collided with a Valencia's player (leading to them losing ball possession) and GET6 for shouting 'son of a b*tch' at an opponent.
DeleteI didn't had the feeling that the game was THAT tense tbh, a few rough challenges but nothing more than that: no malicious acts to be reported. Also 6 cards isn't a huge amount for Liga standards (especially for a game like Getafe-Valencia :D), in my view.
Pereira novo FIFA em 2024 para Portugal
ReplyDeletePrediction CWC
ReplyDeleteAl-Ittihad - Auckland: Penso, Mayo, Nesbitt (all USA), Marciniak (POL) - Guzman (NCA), Hernandez (ESP), Listkiewicz (POL), Lara (CHI)