When Gil Manzano was named to ref the Super Copa final between Real Madrid and Barcelona, Cules like me were very upset. He is widely known among fans for blatantly favoring RM and Barca had lost or drawn 11 of the last 14 games where he was the referee.
Barca won the match 5-2 and the only remotely controversial moment for Manzano was when he red-carded the Barca GK in the 56th minute for a tackle outside the penalty area. It was a good call. The game was too one-sided for him to help RM otherwise. (He possibly could have substituted in for RM’s RHB or RCB, both of whom were pathetic)
Manzano also was the referee of Madrid’s next match, against Celta Vigo in the Copa del Rey round of 16. In the 4th minute, RM GK Andre Lunin made a tackle on a Celta Vigo player. There were differences from the Barca red card: Lunin, unlike the Barcelona player, didn’t make contact with the ball; the tackle was made in the penalty area and the Vigo player would have had a tap-in if not for the tackle. There is a video along with a number of photos all showing a textbook red card.
Manzano didn’t call a foul; he reportedly ignored the calls from the VAR official to stop play and look at the replay; he allowed play to continue while the Vigo player lay on the ground injured and some of his teammates protested. Lunin took the ball, passed it to a teammate who passed it to Kylian Mbappe who came into the attacking zone on a 5 on 3 and scored.
The game went into 9 minutes of extra time tied 2-2. In a late attack, in the 8th minute of extra time, Vigo crossed the ball, which hit the forearm of RM CB Rudiger and bounced off his arm to hit the arm of RM MF Jude Bellingham not once but twice. It hit his upper arm just below the shoulder and then hit his lower arm just below the elbow. Manzano ignored 3 handballs and one again refused to look at the replay.
Because it was in a one match tournament the game then went to OT. RM scored 3 goals and won 5-2. They should have lost 2-1, 3-1 or 4-1 depending upon whether Vigo converts the PKs.
It has caused a firestorm in Spain. There is simply no cogent argument that the Lunin tackle was not a red card. Diego Simeone said that nothing the officials do to help RM surprises him because they have been doing it for 90 years.
I didn’t know a ref could refuse the booth’s request to review a replay and I haven’t seen that answered in the Spanish media yet. If Lunin had been red carded, Madrid’s third GK would have had to play because Courtois was not in the squad for the match.
Barca won the match 5-2 and the only remotely controversial moment for Manzano was when he red-carded the Barca GK in the 56th minute for a tackle outside the penalty area. It was a good call. The game was too one-sided for him to help RM otherwise. (He possibly could have substituted in for RM’s RHB or RCB, both of whom were pathetic)
Manzano also was the referee of Madrid’s next match, against Celta Vigo in the Copa del Rey round of 16. In the 4th minute, RM GK Andre Lunin made a tackle on a Celta Vigo player. There were differences from the Barca red card: Lunin, unlike the Barcelona player, didn’t make contact with the ball; the tackle was made in the penalty area and the Vigo player would have had a tap-in if not for the tackle. There is a video along with a number of photos all showing a textbook red card.
Manzano didn’t call a foul; he reportedly ignored the calls from the VAR official to stop play and look at the replay; he allowed play to continue while the Vigo player lay on the ground injured and some of his teammates protested. Lunin took the ball, passed it to a teammate who passed it to Kylian Mbappe who came into the attacking zone on a 5 on 3 and scored.
The game went into 9 minutes of extra time tied 2-2. In a late attack, in the 8th minute of extra time, Vigo crossed the ball, which hit the forearm of RM CB Rudiger and bounced off his arm to hit the arm of RM MF Jude Bellingham not once but twice. It hit his upper arm just below the shoulder and then hit his lower arm just below the elbow. Manzano ignored 3 handballs and one again refused to look at the replay.
Because it was in a one match tournament the game then went to OT. RM scored 3 goals and won 5-2. They should have lost 2-1, 3-1 or 4-1 depending upon whether Vigo converts the PKs.
It has caused a firestorm in Spain. There is simply no cogent argument that the Lunin tackle was not a red card. Diego Simeone said that nothing the officials do to help RM surprises him because they have been doing it for 90 years.
I didn’t know a ref could refuse the booth’s request to review a replay and I haven’t seen that answered in the Spanish media yet. If Lunin had been red carded, Madrid’s third GK would have had to play because Courtois was not in the squad for the match.
