ITALIAN ref Daniele Orsato will officiate England’s powder-keg Euros opener against Serbia – before he hangs up his whistle at the end of the tournament.
The Venetian, 48, is retiring from the game following his stint in Germany after 18 years as a referee.
Fourteen of those have been spent as a Fifa-listed official, with his most prestigious match being the 2020 Champions League final between Paris Saint-Germain and Bayern Munich.
Manchester United fans may remember him for sending off Paul Pogba in a feisty Champions League last-16 tie with PSG in 2019, in which ten yellow cards were dished out.
While Orsato incurred the wrath of Luka Modric for awarding a controversial penalty to eventual-winners Argentina in Croatia’s World Cup semi-final in Qatar two years ago.
Ballon D’Or winner Modric blasted at the time: “I don’t like to talk about the referees, but this is one of the worst. I don’t have a good memory of him, he’s a disaster”
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Orsato was in tears after blowing the final whistle in PSG’s Champions League semi-final defeat to Borussia Dortmund last month, knowing it was the last game he would officiate in the competition.
The Serie A stalwart was also the man in the middle for Manchester City’s Champions League quarter-final second leg with Real Madrid in April, when Pep Guardiola’s reigning champions lost on penalties to the eventual winners.
Sunday’s clash in Gelsenkirchen is expected to be a fiery encounter, particularly given the hooligan reputation of some of Serbia’s fans.
Orsato will be assisted by fellow Italians Ciro Carbone and Alessadro Giallatini, while another compatriot, Massimiliano Irrati, is on VAR duty.
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EURO 2024 LIVE: LATEST UPDATES FROM THE TOURNAMENT
Meet England’s Euro 2024 Wags
England Wags range from childhood sweethearts to recently blossoming love stories.
Katie Goodland (Harry Kane’s wife)
The fitness instructor has been married to the England captain since 2019 and joined him in Germany with their four children after he joined Bayern Munich.
Laura Celia Valk (Jude Bellingham’s girlfriend)
The stunning Dutch model, 25, has more than half a million Instagram followers and is said to be absolutely smitten with the Real Madrid star.
Rebecca Cooke (Phil Foden’s girlfriend)
Foden’s childhood sweetheart and the mother of his two kids tends to keep out of the spotlight, but is a regular at England games.
Dani Dyer (Jarrod Bowen’s girlfriend)
England’s most famous Wag, former Love Island winner and daughter of Eastenders’ Danny Dyer.
Iris Law (Trent Alexander-Arnold’s daughter)
Dani Dyer isn’t the only actor’s daughter dating an England star. Iris’ dad is Hollywood legend Jude Law.
Megan Davison (Jordan Pickford’s wife)
Megan has been with Pickford since he was 14 years old. The couple married in 2022 and have one son.
Olivia Naylor (John Stones’ girlfriend)
The 33-year-old former beautician has stepped back from her role after giving birth to a baby son.
Read more about the Wags who will be supporting England at Euro 2024 here
Meet Serbia’s Euro 2024 Wags
Serbia’s Wags include a former Versace model, a warlord’s daughter and the country’s answer to Dua Lipa.
Sofija Milosevic (Luka Jovic’s girlfriend)
Leggy model who rocked up at the catwalk in Milan used to date Jovic’s team-mate Adem Ljajic.
Vanja Bogdanovic (Dusan Vlahovic’s girlfriend)
Belgrade native Vanja is said to have known Vlahovic since the couple were teenagers. They briefly broke up before reuniting.
Natalija Ilic (Sergej Milinkovic-Savic’s wife)
Perennial Man Utd transfer target is married to a qualified doctor.
Anastasija Gudelj (Nemanja Gudelj’s wife)
Midfielder’s wife is the daughter of one of Serbia’s most popular singers, Ceca, and a warlord, Arkan, who was assassinated in 2000.
Tea Tairovic (linked to Uros Racic)
Serbia’s equivalent to Dua Lipa has over 800,000 Instagram followers but denied links to midfielder Racic in 2023.
Read more about Serbia’s Euro 2024 Wags here
England have been handed a massive injury-boost ahead of their first game of the tournament.
Both John Stones and Luke Shaw were able to take part in training after their respective injury doubts.
Stones had been confined to his room having suffered with an illness while away on camp.
EURO 2024 LIVE: LATEST UPDATES FROM THE TOURNAMENT
Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk
