The referees in charge of 2025/26 UEFA Champions League Round of 16 ties, first legs, first set of games, 10 March 2026.
18:45 CET - Istanbul (Ali Sami Yen Spor Kompleksi - Rams Park)
GALATASARAY (TUR) - LIVERPOOL FC (ENG)
Referee: Jesús Gil Manzano ESPAssistant Referee 1: Ángel Nevado ESP
Assistant Referee 2: Gudalupe Porras Ayuso ESP
Fourth Official: Juan Martínez Munuera ESP
Video Assistant Referee: Guillermo Cuadra Fernández ESP
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Valentín Pizarro Gómez ESP
UEFA Referee Observer: Vlado Svilokos CRO
UEFA Delegate: Gijs De Jong NED
21:00 CET - Bergamo (New Balance Arena)
ATALANTA BC (ITA) - FC BAYERN MÜNCHEN (GER)
Referee: Espen Eskås NORAssistant Referee 1: Jan Erik Engan NOR
Assistant Referee 2: Isaak Elias Bashevkin NOR
Fourth Official: Sigurd Kringstad NOR
Video Assistant Referee: Tiago Bruno Lopes Martins POR
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Dennis Johan Higler NED
UEFA Referee Observer: Martin Atkinson ENG
UEFA Delegate: Paul Lyon GIB
21:00 CET - Newcastle (St James' Park)
NEWCASTLE UNITED FC (ENG) - FC BARCELONA (ENG)
Referee: Marco Guida ITA
Assistant Referee 1: Giorgio Peretti ITA
Assistant Referee 2: Giuseppe Perrotti ITA
Fourth Official: Matteo Marcenaro ITA
Video Assistant Referee: Daniele Chiffi ITA
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Marco Di Bello ITA
UEFA Referee Observer: Drago Kos SVN
UEFA Delegate: Georges Lüchinger LIE
21:00 CET - Madrid (Estadio Metropolitano)
CLUB ATLÉTICO DE MADRID (ESP) - TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR FC (ENG)
Referee: Serdar Gözübüyük NED
Assistant Referee 1: Patrick Inia NED
Assistant Referee 2: Rogier Honig NED
Fourth Official: Jeroen Manschot NED
Video Assistant Referee: Pol van Boekel NED
Assistant Video Assistant Referee: Rob Dieperink NED
UEFA Referee Observer: Domenico Messina ITA
UEFA Delegate: Emil Ubias CZE
Manzano and Eskas appear to have received backing from UEFA after what, in my view, was a somewhat chaotic performance by both in the R32. Eskas in particular struggled with what looked like a fairly straightforward match with a comfortable scoreline. Yet UEFA has opted to appoint him again, albeit Eskas to one of the lesser fixtures imo.
ReplyDeleteIt does seem safe to assume that UEFA was satisfied with all the key decisions, including the handball in Baku. Another detail that stands out is that Eskas will be working with Pinheiro’s VAR. That raises the question of what it says about Pinheiro’s chances of getting a match himself. At this stage of the competition, probably not much, with all the changing VAR roles.
A tidy appointment for Guida in what is, to me, the biggest match of the evening; the match of the day and the one most eyes will be on. Good for him!
Then there’s Gözübüyük in Madrid. It’s been a decent season for him, although on paper this is still La Liga’s number 3 against the Premier League’s number 16. Curious to see whether the gap will be as big in practice. For fans of “law enforcers” (like M), this is one to watch - I’m sure Gözübüyük will bring his cards.
Hard to predict who we’ll see on Wednesday based on the AVARs (Dieperink and Higler seem to work with just about everyone).
I have already wondered whether UEFA is deliberately refraining from using referees this week who are on the list of potential World Cup candidates, in order to give them more recovery after their seminar in Dubai. Gil Manzano, Gözübüyük, and Guida would fit into this picture – Eskas, however, would not.
ReplyDeleteThe seminar of dubai was delayed
DeleteI suspect that Roberto Rosetti did not just decide today at 10:00 that he would like to appoint the "G-referees" this time, but that the planning had already taken place in advance and he did not completely throw it over now.
DeleteInteresting appointments I think UEFA is using this round 16 has a reset for the officials regarding the names for the Tuesday first leg
ReplyDeleteIn Istanbul's challenging atmosphere, Manzano is a risky and surprising choice, in my opinion.
ReplyDeleteWhat is happening with Rossetti’s appointments? Gil Manzano, Eskas, Guida, Gözübüyük? At least for me, unexpected.
ReplyDeleteWhat do you mean specifically?
DeleteWe are still talking about elite referees working in a normal context for them.
It's true that we often see the same names for many matches, but it's clear that there is a large pool of Elite referees (at least on paper...), not just the World Cup candidates, but the others as well.
Regarding the assignments, in particular, we see significant confidence from UEFA in Eskas, who actually gets this match after a less than perfect outing, at least in my opinion, in Baku.
If the penalty for handball was a penalty, he should have seen it on the pitch, otherwise it was a VAR error (but it doesn't seem like that, given the assignments).
Gil Manzano is also not at his best, certainly a very challenging stadium is waiting for him in Istanbul, we saw with Makkelie.
This one less challenging for me, because English and not Italian team on the other side of the game.
In any case, his Spanish compatriot's mistake in Bergamo was very evident, and perhaps that's also a reason why it's his turn now... I'm sure the no penalty call by Sanchez Martinez was perceived with big disappointment by Rosetti. Easy, very easy, to whistle and give penalty to the Italian side... then in case of mistake, VAR would have corrected.
About the other two, Gozubuyuk is continuing a rather good path this season, and Guida deserved this assignment as well.
You’re right. I was just expecting at least one “bigger” name, so it surprised me a bit that Jesús Gil Manzano and Serdar Gözübüyük are there as well. But it’s clear that this is the round of 16, the first four matches, so there will be room for everyone.
DeleteMaybe my vibes are completely off, but… I have a feeling we might suddenly see a really big name appear in, for example Bodø, or in the Europa League.
ReplyDeleteRosetti surely already has referees in mind for Italy vs. N-Ireland and for the final in that path, and I’d expect him not to use those refs on the biggest ties this week or next week.
Appointments like Manzano, Guida and Gozubuyuk also point to him using a relatively wide pool right now, which suggests some bigger names are being preserved for something bigger that’s coming up.
Exactly well said Anonymous it seems bigger names are being kept in shadows for something else in the future
DeleteOt: Felix's assistant, Christian Dietz, got injured in today's match in Bundesliga. He got replaced by the 4 fo, but didn't not return to the 2 half as a 4 fo.
ReplyDeleteOT:
ReplyDeleteGood performance from Doveri(yes,I said that).Disciplinary control was fine,4 cards for him is like a miracle.
Great style for this game.
But 2 major controversies in stoppage.
1st was cancelled Inter's goal and his late whistle.
And then,IMO VAR should have intervened for Ricci's handball,totally unnatural position and surprised to see no VAR call.
Maybe this all is connected with Inter's controversies and decisions in their favour last couple of games?
i am a big inter fan, I think it was a decent showing for Doveri.
DeleteThe last minute penalty call is a reall on edge case, but I think these contacts should not be whistled.
Not even close to unnatural position.
DeleteManzano stands out as one of Spain's most controversial referees. Following a disastrous officiating performance in his very first Euro 2024 match (France vs. Austria), he was promptly sent packing from the tournament. Unsurprisingly, his name is also missing from the referee roster for the World Cup. On top of that, he has faced severe backlash for his decisions in this season's Champions League fixtures, such as the Bayer Leverkusen vs. PSG clash. Honestly, it’s mind-boggling that he continues to be assigned to high-stakes Champions League matches.
ReplyDeleteTo say that his performance was disastrous means that, either you didn't see the game, or you don't have the slightest idea of refereeing, I'll leave it to your discretion.
Delete@Chefren
ReplyDeleteAny chance to get referee report from yesterday game Benfica B-Feirense? I know they are confidential for most of us but not for you :).
Problem solved!
DeleteHi everyone.
ReplyDeleteA few years ago I shadowed two Premier League referees for the Guardian Long Read. The piece won the Sportswriting prize at the British Journalism Awards.
That story has now become a book.
Over the past 18 months I’ve immersed myself in the lives of referees across Europe’s five major leagues — the Bundesliga, Serie A, La Liga, Ligue 1 and, of course, the Premier League — on matchdays, at home, and even by training as a referee myself.
The book will be published by Penguin and Norton later this year, and I thought you might find it interesting.
More here:
https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/459975/the-impossible-job-by-ralston-william/9780241726716
Chefren and others,
ReplyDeleteWhat are your predictions for next week?
I wanna see kerkez position
ReplyDeleteI think he stepped on ankle maybe red card
DeleteNothing special to say about Gil Manzano first 35 minutes. Just one warning to Lemina at 32. Quite easy match with only minor and rare faults. Good start for spanish crew with YC for Kerkez at 34’ (not intentional one but clear foul).
ReplyDeleteYellow to Kerkez for what exactly??? It wasn't even a foul, ok you can whistle but very soft
ReplyDeleteHe stepped on his foot.
DeleteWhattt clearly faul I think he stepped on ankle
DeleteStep on ankle not very obvious at first look so very good spot on by Manzano.
DeleteWrong YC for Kerkez. For me, not even a foul - Manzano tricked by falling of GALA player.
ReplyDeleteHe stood on the back of his foot. Good spot live by Manzano considering I thought it wasn't even a foul after seeing the first replay
Delete28' PAI pushing/charging
ReplyDeletehttps://streamff.link/v/5338c746
33' YC Kerkez (LIV) for reckless step on achilles, potential RC for SFP but imo okay yc given the nature of the challenge
https://streamff.link/v/c6d42bae
Agree with YC too. Good first half for Gil Manzano’s team.
Delete28' Not a penalty, correct decision.
Delete33' To be honest I don't even see a YC there.
https://snipboard.io/z45v7V.jpg
DeleteAnd what was this yc for Van Dijk? Just a normal foul, if thats criteria for yc there should be 15 yc every match.
ReplyDeleteSPA, the attacker had much free space in front of him.
DeletePathetic offside to disallow the 2nd galatasary goal. The player had no impact at all
ReplyDeleteA very, very controversial decision to disallow Galatasaray’s 2-0 goal for a passive offside position that would influence the defender. It’s extremely harsh and a very “conservative” interpretation, and above all, in my view, it requires a review on-field (OFR) and for the referee to go and make the decision himself! This is not the VAR’s role to override Mr. Gil Manzano here! Absurd!
DeleteAlso kind of a big mistake for the AR to flag that
DeletePassive offside? Which year are you coming coming from, 1981. ?
DeleteThat will create some controversy.
ReplyDeleteCuadra Fernandez not intervening… it feels like the players went to the ball but never had a play on it
I think the it was because of the interference with LIV 28 by the offside player, restricting his ability to play the ball by making physical contact
DeleteI have to review it more carefully, but initially I think it was best to allow the goal
DeleteFinally Caos starts in istanbul
ReplyDeleteHow unlucky is Manzano really..
ReplyDeleteMistake from AR, now OFR with a very difficult handball to spot live.. he’s for sure gonna be negatively rated when he was not doing bas
Bad*
DeleteSorry, but that’s enough, Cuadra Fernandez! A very long check to disallow an English goal tainted by a hand—okay, yes—but there’s a huge foul on Van Dijk and a potential penalty in my view, and yet again no on-field review, with VAR deciding alone! This is complete nonsense!
ReplyDeleteObjective handball? Does it touch Van Dijk after Konate's arm? If so, I'm not 100% sure about if that was a correct intervention. One to see again
ReplyDeleteWell, defnitely impossible for Gil Manzano to understand anything when Liverpool scored 1-1, let's say that in old football, without VAR, this one would have been allowed...
ReplyDeleteHe underperformed a lot, but I must say he is one of the most unlucky referees as of lately
DeleteWith the foul on Van Dijk, it was a mandatory OFR !
DeleteWhy the lack of on field review? Is this a uefa directive?
ReplyDeleteManzanos ability to assess what is and isnt a foul is shocking
ReplyDelete62' Goal GAL disallowed for offside by AR1, correct imo
ReplyDeletehttps://streamff.link/v/8f50e365
70' Goal LIV disallowed for handball of the goalscorer after VAR-only intervention; interesting issue whether the following touch by Galatasaray's player should annul the 'goalscorer's handball' clause
https://streambug.org/cv/133701
If the Gala player touched it, it should definitely have been a goal decision.
DeleteThe offside call can be easily assessed as correct because attacker deliberate prevents the defender from trying to reach ball, however in reality this kind of situation goes most of the times always unnoticed and assistant referees don't raise flag. Sometimes we have OFR to invite referee to decide while in other circumstances not. However here it's not about assessing it as clear anv obvious mistake because the decision has been taken on the pitch and it's fully supportable. While for some aspects one must praise assistant referee for raising flag, the doubts of many people is about consistency in such situations, very often assessed as rather marginal (off the ball offsides). One should ask for more consistency.
DeleteAbout the goal, impossible situation to judge live, but the Spanish referee didn't give us a positive impression while trying to see something, I would say. Too far away from the scene, not looking for a best angle, and then not convinced he did the only thing he could do, allowing goal and then waiting for VAR. But at least he could have given an absolutely more positive impression with a better body language. Handball then impossible to see, as said, not clear honestly what happened later.
The handball goal is blatantly clear to see. Hits the arm, then a defender, then his hip, then the goalkeeper. Meaning that he has score immediately after it another of his body part. Must be disallowed.
DeleteThe yellow in the last minute sums up the spanish ref. Pathetic
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, a very poor performance by Gil Manzano. He literally whistled everything and had no real sense for the flow of a proper football match.
ReplyDeleteSome of the above comments are very hyperbolic.
ReplyDeletePersonally feel the offside disallowed goal is absolutely correct given the clear run towards the ball and physical impact on his opponent.
Liverpool disallowed goal for me is wrong as a factual decision given the amount of players it subsequently hits before going in.
The YC at the end is a clear arm out to the face. UEFA always seems to expect YC for those incidents
The first yellow card for Tottenham could have been managed with a public warning. There was only minimal contact.
ReplyDeleteMandatory YC for BAR16 missed by Guida
ReplyDelete+1 frankly unbelievable that is not a YC
DeleteAgree. Not acceptable.
DeleteIn 7' in Bergamo there was a holding, Eskas played on, attacker from Bayern made scene to win a penalty, but VAR didn't intervene. I think borderline, maybe more NO PENALTY than PENALTY, but the action by defender existed, and we know UEFA is strict with holdings.
ReplyDelete12’ : how on earth Guida didn’t YCarded Fermin Lopez here ? Unbelievable. Oh sorry it’s because of suspension. And again at 14 for Conselo. Very lenient style by italian referee. Poor for me.
ReplyDeleteAlso AR2 Perrotti very poor with two phantom offside positions in 3 key decisions…
DeleteYep disaster from AR2
DeleteVery clear YC, unsporting behavior, holding with both arms, lack of respect.
Deletehttps://streambug.org/cv/7b6102
The Italian referee just didn't want to issue a card to control game in that way, but extremely poor, sorry, one must be honest.
2nd missed YC for Guida ..
ReplyDeleteNow again on 18' another missed YC, at least Guida is consistent.
ReplyDeleteAgain mandatory YC missed by Guida, holding again. Ultra lenient today
ReplyDeleteGuida with Doveri's style... Two blatant YCs for holding not shown. He knew he has to give it in 19' but deliberately ignored it after no card to Barcelona player in 12'...
ReplyDeleteAgain YC forgotten for Hall and Newcastle at 19’. The same line of extreme leniency for Guida but…never possible for Champions KO stage. We seem to be in northern Ireland third division match tonight with italian refs…
ReplyDeleteCrowd would have gone crazy if he had given the yellow to Hall after not booking Fermin
DeleteSure, but that‘s not an apology now he has missed two crystal clear YCs. 1 minus 1 doesn‘t equal zero.
Delete1 plus 1 of course
DeleteAgree 100. How to explain for new referees??
ReplyDeleteGuida has decided to officiate in this game to avoid any controversy in case of possible second YC to show, I repeat again, very poor, this is not from a top official, very clear and easy cards to issue.
ReplyDeleteThis is what Mourinho was referring when he was critical of Letexier.
DeleteCompare Letexier to Guida in terms of charisma or braveness is like compare a Ferrari with a Skoda…
DeleteSorry but it's unacceptable to see such events in Madrid... the image of the Champions League is seriously damaged by that. You never see something like that at very top level.
ReplyDeleteWhat’s problem in Madrid Chefren ?
DeleteA team in disarray, the goalkeeper on the verge of a nervous breakdown, 4-0 after a few minutes, the goalkeeper replaced, we have never seen a Champions League match like this, it's very sad.
DeleteOh ok i was thinking about crowd issues.
DeleteUnfortunately, completely phantom foul by Gozubuyuk leading to Atlético's 4th goal.
ReplyDeleteSeems like a missed fouk for Guida detected by Marcenaro
ReplyDeleteAnd now a YC on 33' from Guida which now completely undermines his authority and control as he never gave the first two. Comes across as lacking authority
ReplyDeleteTerribly inconsistent and frankly not a good opening 35 minutes so far
DeleteAnd now YC for a far low foul by Guida. No words about his poor performance. Give me back Collina, Rossetti or Braschi !
ReplyDeleteI would prefer the generation of Agnolin and Casarin
DeleteWhat on earth is Guida going? Now again a clear missed YC for Yamal.
ReplyDeleteRefereeing by Guida is a scandal. How can Yamal not cautionned with his blatant foul at 41’ ? No braveness, no constency and no charisma by Guida. He ´s not an Elite referee. Not at all…
ReplyDeleteWith a correct observer this must be a very very low mark, missing about 5 cards which maybe could have been zero if he had taken the first possible one!!
ReplyDelete38’ Clear missed RC for Tottenham. Gözübüyük did not even whistle. A flying tackle with a straight leg and studs into the ankle. Unbelievable that the VAR remained silent here.
ReplyDeleteFirst contact on the ball and, most important, contact with a lifted and not standing leg point towards YC
Deletehttps://streamff.link/v/f359dbc4
Agree with Sanchez. Clear Red card for me. SFP and too high and very dangerous tackle without any ability.
DeleteIMO, rather RC than YC, but … Gözübüyük did not even whistle
DeleteOne of the most horrific first half Champions League refereeing I have ever seen by Guida and his AR2. Only AR1 at level. Unbelievable.
ReplyDeleteHowever we might be critical of Turpin,Marciniak or Vincic,coild you imagine them not showing YC's for both instances like Guida had not shown in Newcastle?
ReplyDeleteWith the exception of Eskas (second half permitting) this has been a really underwhelming and poor performance from the officials. Inconsistent and too much managing the game (which I accept is where modern football has gone) but I just wish referees would get back to refereeing with authority and control. Rosetti and teams appointment policy for tonight I'm afraid has left a lot to be desired.
ReplyDelete+1
DeleteWell,it's not that bad of a performance.
ReplyDeleteBut inconsistent with very fiery crowd .
Missed YC's should be his warning and signal to change his style in 2nd half.
5 goals and 1sub, only 2 min added time
ReplyDeleteIn Madrid the foul detection by the Dutch crew has not been great. The first yellow card was unnecessary, then a phantom foul was awarded just outside the penalty area and later a clear red card for Tottenham was missed without even a whistle. This understandably led to frustration on the Atlético bench.
ReplyDeletePerhaps because the Madrid player’s foot was off the ground, VAR Van Boekel was hesitant to intervene. Personally, I do not think that should make a difference with such a forceful tackle. If the foot had been planted on the ground, the consequences could indeed have been much worse.
DeleteAgree. RC missed and phantom foul…Gozubuyuk..
DeleteEskas is an EXCELLENT Referee! This guy is a sports-machine. He is in shape! Nice to see.
ReplyDeleteMuch better Guida for now in Newcastle
ReplyDeleteAgree good second half by very easy to assess. One good YC for Barca.
DeleteAtletico and bayern games over from first leg.. wonder if assignments will change
ReplyDeleteWatching Guida and the difference from first half to second is remarkable in all honesty. A far better level and overall more in control.
ReplyDeleteThats excellent level from Guida in second half
ReplyDeleteBayern Atalanta would be for a Category 1. Will UEFA change assignment? Otherwise a chance for Schaerer?
ReplyDelete+1
DeleteMaybe obrenovic 😂
DeleteOr marciniak to get back in shape?
DeleteWhoever performs better from the recently-promoted refs assigned in EL (Rumsas, Walsh, Kavanagh, Obrenovic or Lambrechts, Jablonski is obviously ineligible)
DeleteA good one for Taylor.
DeleteI'm in two minds, I would expect similar sentiments to Quilava in terms of a new elite or could we see a big name protected and sent there instead, a WC playoff referee.
DeleteFeels like missed offside on 78th by AR1
ReplyDelete66’ Again a blatant foul missed by Gözübüyük, potentially a red or at least orange card. A kick with the studs from behind onto the achilles of the Tottenham player, with no chance to play the ball. I have seen red cards given for such dangerous tackles on the soft muscle area of players.
ReplyDeleteIs the law changed? Guida allows a player to enter the field from the goalline when the ball is in play!! Correct?
ReplyDelete+ 1
DeleteMusah and Kimmich really wanted to avoid the 2nd leg. So obvious! Could have been handled better by Eskås.
ReplyDeleteWhat, not to show them YC for blatant timewasting?
DeleteChefren : is law has changed ? A player can come back from goalline during the play ? Or is a new Guida catastrophic decision ?
ReplyDeleteNever allowed unless it’s part of natural play as in accidentally and temporarily being outside for a few seconds.
DeleteSo in that case Unbelievable law application false by Guida….
DeleteCorrect pk by Guida
ReplyDeleteCorrect penalty kick by Guida.
ReplyDeleteAgree but was there any reason to add 40 more of 4 mn added time for Guida? When you analyze this added time, no explanation…
DeleteI can’t really fault Guide for awarding that penalty, but these are the kinds I hate in football. The contact has virtually no impact on its own, the attacker falls independently to try to draw the penalty and it works.
ReplyDeleteGuida is simply not at that level, to be honest. In almost every situation he doesn’t make the decision immediately, but waits a few seconds before blowing the whistle. The penalty was correctly awarded and obvious. As for the rest, I’m not sure.
ReplyDeleteWell some of them he gave good advantages .. I actually liked his second half
DeleteThe game ended and the Newcastle players went to complain to Guida about the penalty. Complain about what? The penalty was correctly awarded, despite Olmo exaggerating the foul.
ReplyDeletePerhaps because added time was over and no reason to continue at all…
DeleteThere were two reasons actually! The substitution went into the added time (+30'') and one of NEW players significantly delayed the restart close to the benches. Guida didn't issue a YC (imo wrongly) but I'm sure he had added the minute or a half in mind.
DeleteOne thing that really frustrates me is when referees add a certain amount of added on time like with Guida now, however that added time is not actually what should have been added on and things in the match cause delays, then the referee has to add more time and incidents like penaltys take place and it just causes people to hate referees, its like self inflicted hate! If the referees just managed to get the added time right in the first place we wouldnt have these debates and people complaining. Hopefully ive made my point clear this in criticism towards M, Guida, the pen was correct.
ReplyDeleteGozubuyuk maintained overall control of the match and was largely accepted by the players. Importantly, the final score was not directly influenced by his decisions, which is always a positive outcome.
ReplyDeleteHowever, his foul detection did not reach the expected level for a match of this level. At least one clear RC offence and another RC or strong orange card situation were missed, with neither incident resulting in a whistle. These were significant challenges that required a stronger response.
His management of pushing and holding during corner kicks also appeared somewhat hectic at times, lacking the calm and preventive approach that helps maintain order in such situations.
In summary, while the match itself was relatively normal and did not present excessive difficulty, the overall performance was not fully convincing.
Overall control maybe but foul detection was horrible and especially consistency with YC. Clear RC missed on the Van de Ven foul and probably another RC missed. Really poor imo, not the level for this type of match.
DeleteIs there anyone else that thinks that the penalty is a bit soft? I mean obviously there is a little contact but that doesn't make Olmo fall. He falls by himself because he feels the contact on his leg. If he would have stod up and continued playinf, the contact would have made no impact on him and no one would have asked for a penalty.
ReplyDeleteIt has to be whistled
DeleteThis is my read exactly. I can’t really fault a referee for whistling it, but I wish our analysis of these situations was different. Just like you said, the contact did not cause the fall, and if the player had stayed on his feet, no one would ever really think to award a penalty. So there is this cognitive dissonance in referees’ minds that the exact same action by a defender becomes more of a penalty if the player falls over, which encourages this behavior.
DeleteI think we need to change the paradigms here: no matter what, the attacker’s own reaction should never influence the referee’s decision! This can either be accomplished by raising the bar such that these “soft”/“non-impactful” contacts are no longer given as penalties, or for referees to actually start whistling the same actions as penalties even if the attacker decides to stay on his feet.
The latter is less likely to happen, so I prefer the former: to not whistle a penalty for these contacts that don’t actually cause the attacker to fall or be otherwise notably impeded.
Re. Guida. He became a victim of his no-YC decision for LoR holding in 12'. Then, as he didn't book Fermín, he had two options in 19' - to issue a mandatory YC for SPA holding to Hall, causing understandable rage from Newcastle players and fans or totally bend the laws and logic only to balance things up. He chose the second option, okay, but he should've communicated it better to players and audience, by publicly indicating Barcelona player and holding gesture and then pointing to Hall and making a one-one gesture.
ReplyDeleteThen, after he balanced the no card decisions it was 100% correct to issue a YC for another holding offence in 34', this time to NEW #8. However, Guida should've been smart enough to caution Yamal in 40' - although the foul not being a clear SPA, he would show a good football understanding by balancing cards there.
After correctly rejected penalty appeal in 45', the second half didn't bring many challenges for the Italian (possible YC for SPA in 49', correct YC for reckless challenge in 68', NEW goal correctly disallowed for offside in 74') but he again made his life harder by:
1) not issuing a YC to Araújo for re-entering the field of play while being injured outside (delaying the restart)
2) allowing him to enter the FoP through the goalline (85') and
3) not booking NEW player for delaying the restart in 90+2', also not showing publicly he is going to add something extra for that (then, correctly letting the play to continue for more than initially added four minutes and awarding a correct penalty).
So, in general, management left much to be desired, especially that Guida didn't care to adequately communicate his decisions. Poor evening for the Italian...
I was just corrected by friend that Guida actually showed he'll add more time when Tonali was delaying the restart in 90+2'!
DeleteVery nice review of the game for those who missed it, thank you!
Delete“He would show good football understanding by balancing cards there”
DeleteYamal should’ve been booked because his foul was reckless. This philosophy of “balancing cards” between teams is an explicitly biased approach to refereeing, saying that your bar for a yellow card to one team is higher than your bar for the other team. This is a very corrosive way of thinking about refereeing.
I agree you should never invent cards to balance, but I don't think that is what Euro Soccer Ref is suggesting. If you have just given a YC to one team, deciding not to YC the other team in a 50/50 call, even if that is supportable in isolation, will mean you then have to work much harder the next 10/15 minutes to rebuild trust with the players and that can create more important issues. A supportable "balancing" YC that the players all accept helps to avoid that situation.
DeleteFor me, the penslty given to BAR, isn't. Very easy ,and smart fall from the attacker .
DeleteI agree on the first 2 YC ( mandatory) , disagree with Yamal's YC, not a mandatory one and correct decision imo.
DeleteI think his second half was more than decent and I think the committee will actually like his performance
The only thing I'd add, is there were multiple points around the match were players held on to the ball, kicked it away, or took a while to take a restart, which could (should) have been sanctioned. DtR was completely ignored all game, and I don't think the 90+2' example was worse than many others, so for consistency I accept no YC here, but there were many other times there should have been
DeleteI've also noticed today that Gil Manzano and Guida whistled attacking fouls almost every time someone was near keepers on corners and free kicks. A big contrast compared to Premier League games. To be honest I don't like all this pushing, shoving and blocking that is happening in England on set pieces but also you have to equally punish attackers and defenders for the same fouls. Gil Manzano and Guida punished only attackers, wrestling from defenders was allowed.
ReplyDeleteyes also noticed that .. which is weird cause Guida doesn't do that in Serie A .. Are these guidelines in UCL? Maybe Rosetti wants this .. Who knows in the end ...
DeleteOver all the performances were not very underwhelming but not matching the standards expected from them, the worst one Guida and the best was Eskas, he had a much easier game and managed to get through it compared to other refs
ReplyDeleteMy predictions for LIV - GAL Marciniak/Pelito
ReplyDeleteBAR- NEW, Zwayer, Mackeli
Very solid performance so far by Eskas live in Bergamo, almost perfect IMO.
ReplyDeleteMy predictions for the second leg
ReplyDeleteLIV- GAL- middle to top elite
BAY-ATL - Cat 1 or a WC playoff referee
BAR - NCL - someone similar in statute to Guida (middle elite)
TOT - ATL - middle elite or experienced Cat 1
Agree with everyone about Serdar. But both him and Van Bokel in VAR should be blamed. He seem to be afraid of showing red cards.
ReplyDelete2 weeks ago in Holland game was Telstar-Nac Breda Serdar did the same thing when he did not show red card for NAC Breda player Leemans in min 35 who was already on yellow.
As Chefren stated about Guida yesterday some referee want to avoid red cards at any cost .
In my opinion, it wasn't an extremely negative set of refereeing performances. In the end, the fact that there were no OFRs, but only one overrule for a goal scored with a handball in Istanbul, is a positive signal. Overall, of course there are some things to review and, regarding certain refereeing approaches, some of the choices made are not entirely convincing.
ReplyDeleteRegarding Gil Manzano, I believe the disallowed goal for offside is absolutely correct. The issue, however, is that very often this type of situation is not noticed. Quite often an assistant referee doesn't raise the flag for something like this during the match, and sometimes the VAR intervenes and sometimes not when similar situations appear in goals that initially look regular. So what I would ask for is at least consistency. Because, clearly, this is the correct decision: the player effectively blocks the opponent. But if we want to move toward real consistency, then all VARs should intervene when this type of decision is missed on the field. In any case, the decision itself deserves praise for the assistant awareness, nothing to say about that.
As for Gil Manzano on the disallowed goal, he may have tried to get a better look, but in my opinion it was impossible to make any real judgment. In any case, not a superb performance, but I would say it is within the normal standard, with a couple of aspects that could have been handled better. Still, nothing particularly significant. It was a very important result for the Turkish side, and we will see what happens in the return leg.
Nothing much to say about Eskås in Bergamo, except for a possible penalty in the 7' minute. But as you can easily understand, with that high number of goals from the Bavarians, it becomes almost pointless to even analyze that potential holding incident. For me it looked more like an exaggeration of contact than a real penalty.
Next, Madrid game. In my view what happened in the first 20 minutes was a farce. It is unacceptable at Champions League level for a team to come onto the pitch in that way. I'm sorry, but honestly if I were Tudor I would resign already today, because the image the team gave was dreadful, and that is not acceptable.
These are high-level, serious matches, not amateur games where someone experiments in this way and ends up creating psychological shocks for the players involved. Very little to say about the refereeing itself, but the match is certainly more open than the one in Bergamo, because the two goals scored by Tottenham make a possible 3–0 not impossible. Of course a miracle would be needed, but we know Atlético Madrid can be a strange team.
DeleteThen there is a lot to say about Guida. I'm sorry, but I will admit it again: he clearly wanted to referee the match in this way, otherwise there would have been cards, second yellow cards, suspensions, and so on. It was terrible to reason like this. The pure refereeing was violated. I hate Daniele Doveri for this kind of approach when he does it, and Guida is not the type of referee who should behave like that, I can assure you. But in this case, in my opinion, the prestige of the match made him think in that way, and it's terrible. I raise my hands and I give up, because if you look at the overall management of the game, what would it have cost him to give those yellow cards? No one can argue when a yellow card is that obvious. I will never understand referees who make these choices. Then we might start thinking that the heads of the committee are not that strict in asking for being accurate, because if they were, referees would avoid this approach entirely. But I don't think they operate in such a confidential way as to say “please give cards.” These are personal decisions that we can strongly criticize, and hopefully Roberto Rosetti also sees it the way we do, because these things must stop. Refereeing is not just accompanying a game, but officiating it.
That said, even if we ignore the cards that were spared, he could have been more communicative with the players. As always, Euro Soccer Referee made a very good analysis, but in my opinion Guida himself almost seemed embarrassed to show that he was refereeing in that way, as if he had consciously chosen that approach, so he didn't want to make that manifest. At that point we even start entering his psychology.
The penalty at the end is clearly an exaggeration of the contact by the Barcelona player. I perfectly understand the viewpoints of those of you writing about it, but in the end the contact can't be completely excluded. In Italy, if something like that is not given on the field, it often leads to a VAR review, and perhaps rightly so, because the defender put his foot there. However, the reaction is disgraceful.
In addition, Tte theatrical behavior of the Barcelona player, who re-enters the field after falling outside it, is obscene. I would send off players for that kind of behavior.
In any case, Guida chose to referee the match in a poor way. I'm honestly very sorry about that, because all things considered it was a match that could have been fully controlled, especially by someone with his abilities. As for the tendency to whistle more fouls, that is an Italian habit, and I wouldn't have much to say about it. But the real problem was certainly the yellow cards he failed to give. And I regret that, because whenever he has the chance to showcase his quality even more, something always seems to happen. This time, however, it is entirely his fault, and there is nothing more I can add.
Well said senior Chefren navigating each game with unbiased analysis, great job
DeleteElite referees that does not game this week
ReplyDelete1 joao pinheiro
2 vincic
3 kovacs
4 nyberg
5Turpin
6 Letexier
7 oliver
What do you mean by “does not game this week”? It’s only Wednesday, and referee appointments are usually released 2, at most 3 days in advance.
DeleteTaylor is no longer an elite referee or what
DeleteThe time of taylor is over
DeleteI mean this week
ReplyDeleteSpanish referees generally tend to have a very authoritative presence on the pitch. Although Manzano fit this profile in the past, we can see that his distant demeanor has faded and he now communicates much better with the players. However, my only criticism of Manzano in this match is the absolutely unnecessary yellow card he showed to Sanchez in a position where it wasn't even clear if it was a foul. To make matters worse, Sanchez is now suspended for the next match because of this card.
ReplyDeleteAlongside Osimhen, Sanchez is one of the team's two most crucial players; he means to Galatasaray what Van Dijk means to Liverpool. I believe this unfair card reduces Galatasaray's defensive strength by around 30% and severely damages their chances of advancing to the next round. It was no coincidence that manager Okan Buruk reacted so fiercely to this decision after the game.
Looking at it from a financial perspective, Galatasaray is a €344 million team, while Liverpool boasts a €1.02 billion squad. Given this massive gap, referees need to be extra careful to ensure fair competition. Unfortunately, such a cheap card completely ruins that competitive environment. On top of that, UEFA has handed down an away ban for reasons no one really understands, meaning there will be no Galatasaray fans in the stadium for the second leg. Under all these disadvantageous conditions, it is genuinely incredibly hard for clubs with more limited resources to compete against the giant teams.