Rated as one of, if not the best referee in the game, Szymon Marciniak has been punished for his huge blunder in Real Madrid’s win over Bayern Munich.
Polish outlet Przeglad Sportowy report that their countryman has been withdrawn from the Euro 2024 opener between Germany and Scotland – one of the most prestigious matches of the tournament.
The decision comes after Marciniak and his linesman cancelled out a Matthijs de Ligt equaliser far earlier than usual practice would suggest.
Bayern were desperately seeking an equaliser in stoppage time and a ball forward was cleared to De Ligt, who tucked the ball in, thinking he’d forced extra time.
However, Marciniak had already blown his whistle for offside, which goes against normal practice, as officials are supposed to allow marginal calls to play out before reviewing them after with the use of VAR.
Some replays suggest that De Ligt may have been offside, but not Noussair Mazraoui who played the ball, and Bayern’s players and staff vented their fury with the decision.
Speaking post-match, De Ligt revealed: “The linesman said to me ‘I’m sorry, I made a mistake’. I can’t buy anything with that. I’m not the type of person who wants to blame a loss or win on the referee but it means you have to win because you win 2-1. I think if it’s a rule, it’s a rule.”
Thomas Tuchel added: “The linesman said sorry but that does not help. At that kind of level, to raise the flag in a decision like this, a close decision in the last minute.
“And the referee as well, the referee does not have to whistle. He sees that we win the second ball, he sees that we get a shot away. To whistle is a very, very bad decision.
“It’s against the rules and it’s a bad decision from both of them, it’s a disaster. Tough to swallow but that’s the way it is.”
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