*Wenger Slams refereeing decisions, Backs Barcelona
*Not Worth Going Down That Road, Barca Goalie Tells Players, Fans
UEFA has finally broken its silence regarding referee, Szymon Marciniak, following a wave of criticism from the Barcelona camp. The 44-year-old officiated Inter Milan’s dramatic 4-3 second-leg victory over the Spanish side in the Champions League semi-final, which sealed a 7-6 aggregate win for Simone Inzaghi’s men to set up a final against PSG in Munich on May 31.
Marciniak has come under heavy scrutiny from Barcelona, with Pedri calling for an investigation into his performance and head coach Hansi Flick claiming “every 50-50 decision” went Inter’s way. The backlash has been fierce, centred largely on his decision not to award a free-kick for a perceived foul on Gerard Martin in the lead-up to Inter’s stoppage-time equaliser, a moment that ultimately ended Barcelona’s hopes of reaching the final and completing a treble this term.
Despite the uproar from Barcelona, however, UEFA’s response has been notably more supportive of the Polish official. Contrary to what the Spanish press might wish to have happened, the governing body has taken a far more measured and positive stance.
In an update, saw no issue or fault with his performance at the San Siro, reaffirming confidence in the Polish referee, who previously officiated both the 2022 World Cup final and last year’s Champions League final.
According to MARCA, when asked about Marciniak, a UEFA spokesperson simply replied: “There is no problem.”
Interestingly, Marciniak is now seen as a leading candidate to referee the upcoming final between Inter and Paris Saint-Germain, especially with fellow top official, Clement Turpin, ruled out due to his French nationality. He is also set to feature at the revamped Club World Cup in the United States this summer.
Having officiated 674 matches across European and Asian competitions, he remains one of UEFA’s most trusted referees.
According to givemesport.com, the confirmation that Marciniak is still a trusted referee by his employers may come as a huge sigh of relief for the Pole, who had to deal with false news stories coming out about him taking part in an interview in retaliation to allegations made by Barcelona. A Middle Eastern outlet ran quotes claiming Marciniak he had, which then made its way quickly to Spanish reports, but Polish outlet Przegląd Sportowy Onet responded and clarified no such interview had been given.
“The statements published by the Egyptian and Spanish media, which resonated strongly on social media, turned out to be a big lie,” the outlet said. “A referee is not allowed to make post-match comments about decisions he has made. As Szymon Marciniak himself informed us , no such statement took place.”
Meanwhile, Arsene Wenger, FIFA’s Director of World Football Development, was particularly critical of the VAR process.
He argued that the system is being used incorrectly in football.
“You can’t referee in slow motion. VAR isn’t meant for this kind of situation, and it can’t continue like this,” Wenger said, as quoted by SPORT.
Wenger also had strong words about the penalty decision itself, specifically regarding the tackle by Pau Cubarsi.
“At normal speed, it was a great tackle. The defender won the ball, and that should have been the end of it. However, when slow-motion replays are used, things change, but this is not how football should be,” he explained.
Wenger’s criticism didn’t stop at the penalty; he also pointed out that Cubarsi was the first to reach the ball in the incident.
“Look at what Lautaro Martinez is doing. He knows that in this play he is not going to score and he is leaning more and more towards Cubarsi. He is clearly looking for the penalty, and for me, the referee has not made the right decision.
“Let people look at who is the first to play the ball. It’s Cubarsi, and the rest is done by Lautaro. For me, it is clearly not a penalty and you cannot whistle an action like that, which live already seemed clear to me that there was no foul,” he added.
Barcelona’s defeat was tough, but the conversations about refereeing and VAR highlight the need for improvements to ensure fairness in the game.
In a relatedndevelopment, Barcelona goalkeeper, Wojciech Szczesny, has warned against harassing referee Marciniak, saying it’s not worth going down that road.
