The lowdown on the man in the middle for Liverpool’s clash with Real Madrid in Kiev on Saturday…
UEFA has confirmed the officiating team who will be taking charge of the Champions League final this upcoming weekend.
The players of Liverpool and Real Madrid, who meet at the NSC Olimpiyskiy Stadium in Ukraine for a 7.45pm BST kick-off on Saturday, May 26, will be joined on the pitch by Serbian referee Milorad Mažić.
Compatriots Milovan Ristić and Dalibor Djurdjević are his designated assistants, while Frenchman Clement Turpin will be patrolling the technical areas in the role of fourth official.
Mažić, 45, has been refereeing on the European and international stage since 2009, most notably taking charge of the Confederations Cup final between Chile and Germany last year and the 2016 Super Cup involving Real and Sevilla.
This season, he has taken charge of four Champions League matches, as well as two Europa League encounters.
Mažić officiated at both the 2014 World Cup and 2016 European Championships, and will also go to Russia for this summer’s World Cup.
Both of Liverpool’s two previous encounters with the experienced whistle blower have come in the knockout stages of the Europa League, with the most recent being the 1-1 draw with Manchester United at Old Trafford two years ago (six yellow cards shown, three to Liverpool).
During that round of 16 second leg encounter Mažić awarded United a penalty after Nathaniel Clyne brought down Anthony Marital. The resulting spot-kick was dispatched by the forward but the Merseysiders would prevail 3-1 on aggregate.
Prior to that Mažić was also in charge at Anfield in February 2011, when Dirk Kuyt‘s late header gave Liverpool a 1-0 round of 32 win over Sparta Prague both on the night and on aggregate.
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