Maurizio Mariani to referee UEFA Champions League clash between Manchester City and Sparta Prague in League Phase clash | OneFootball

An all-Italian team of match officials led by Maurizio Mariani will oversee proceedings on matchday three in Manchester City’s UEFA Champions League campaign.

Pep Guardiola and his players will be wanting to maintain their unbeaten start to the season, and further establish their position as a potential automatic qualifier for the knock-out stage of Europe’s premier club competition.

Last time out in the competition, City recorded their first victory of the season by comfortably progressing past Slovan Bratislava in Slovakia with goals from Ilkay Gundogan and Phil Foden added to by Erling Haaland and James McAtee.

A follow-up win against Fulham in the Premier League was then added to on the other side of the international break, with John Stones’ 95th minute winner at Molineux ensuring all three points against Wolves on Sunday afternoon.

Ahead of the meeting between Manchester City and Sparta Prague, UEFA have now announced the list of match officials to oversee proceedings at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday night!

Match Referee

UEFA have announced that 42-year-old Italian official Maurizio Mariani will take charge of proceedings between Manchester City and Czech side Sparta Prague at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday night.

This will be the first time that Pep Guardiola and his players have seen a contest officiated by Mariani, who has been involved as a lead match official in UEFA Champions League contests on five previous occasions, issuing 26 yellow cards, one red card, and two penalties.

Mariani’s only Champions League game so far this season came in France as he took charge of officiating duties on the field between LOSC Lille and Real Madrid, in a 1-0 win for the hosts that also brought about seven yellow cards and an awarded penalty kick.

Assistant Referees

Providing assistance to Mariani from the sidelines at the Etihad Stadium will be Italian assistant referee duo, Daniele Bindoni and Alberto Tegoni.

Video Assistant Referees

Taking on the role of Video Assistant Referee will be Aleandro Di Paolo, as confirmed by UEFA, with Assistant Video Assistant Referee duties landing on Valerio Marini.

Fourth Official

Standing between the two dugouts and overseeing managerial antics involving Pep Guardiola and Sparta Prague’s Lars Friis will be Italian official Andrea Colombo, taking on the role of fourth official.