UEFA has removed two Spanish referees, Alejandro Hernández Hernández and Jesús Gil Manzano, from officiating at Euro 2024 following complaints about their recent performances.
Hernández, serving as the VAR official, came under scrutiny for denying Scotland’s penalty claim in their 1-0 defeat to Hungary last Sunday. Manzano faced criticism for his officiating during France’s 1-0 win over Austria.
Their assistants, Diego Barbero Sevilla and Ángel Nevado Rodríguez, were also dismissed.
This decision leaves Martínez Munuera, a VAR official, as the sole Spanish representative for the remainder of the tournament.
Former La Liga referee Iturralde Gonzalez has urged the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) to strengthen its relationship with UEFA following the dismissal of four out of five Spanish officials after the group stage. “There is an urgent need for a Spanish representative on the refereeing committee,” Gonzalez told Spanish radio network Cadena SER.
Meanwhile, Argentine referee Facundo Tello, who dismissed Scotland’s penalty protests against Hungary, has been appointed as the fourth official for Italy’s last-16 match against Switzerland on Saturday, despite earlier reports suggesting he had been dropped by UEFA.
Scotland manager Steve Clarke expressed frustration after his team was denied a penalty when Stuart Armstrong was brought down inside the box by Willi Orban. Tello dismissed the claim, and Hernández did not advise a review. Clarke remarked, “In a European competition it might have been better to have a European referee.
But we had European VAR. Maybe the referee didn’t see the challenge clearly on the pitch, but what’s the purpose of VAR if they’re not going to come in on something like that? It’s a penalty. It’s 100 percent a penalty.”
Austria also voiced their dissatisfaction with Manzano’s officiating in their 1-0 loss to France, after they were not awarded a corner shortly before Max Wöber’s own goal secured the win for Didier Deschamps’ side.
