The referee defined Colombia vs. Spain: comes from being involved in controversy with Liverpool

The technician Nestor Lorenzo continues to finalize details for what will be the first game of 2023 for the Colombia selection that will face this Friday, March 22, the team of Spain in an international friendly for the Fifa date.

During the day this Wednesday it was learned that the English referee Michael Oliver will be in charge of dispensing justice in the match between the Colombia national team and Spain, which will be played at the London Olympic Stadium from 3:30 in the afternoon, Colombian time.

The English judge, 39 years old, is a regular at the competitions Uefa and international for England since 2012, for this Friday's match, he will be assisted on the wings by his compatriots Lee Betts and James Mainwaringwith fellow Englishman Jarred Gillett serving as fourth referee.

Notably, Michael Oliver He is the same referee who was the protagonist of a strong controversy in England a few weeks ago in the great game between Liverpool and Manchester City, on matchday 28 of the Premier League.

In injury time, when the game was tied 1-1, the judge decided not to take a clear kick to the chest of the forward of the citizens Jeremy Doku about the Argentine Alexis Mac AllisterOliver determined that it was not a penalty for the networks and the members of the VAR did not call him to review the controversial play either.

In fact, the technician Liverpool, Jurgen Klopp, exploded at a press conference and referred especially to that play: “It was a penalty, 100 percent. They'll find some kind of explanation, but it's 100 percent a foul anywhere on the field, and probably a yellow card. All the people with iPads around me were like 'wow, that's clear.' Maybe they can hide by saying it wasn't clear and obvious. “It is clear that it was a penalty, but they did not point it out and that is fine,” he said.

Later, the journalist François Plateau reported that Oliver received “financial remuneration for freelance work” as a referee in the United Arab Emirates.

The controversy broke out because the Manchester City belongs to the sheikh Mansour bin Zayed, a member of the Abu Dhabi ruling family and vice president of the United Arab Emirates, a nation founded by his father Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. The club has been involved in several controversial arbitration decisions that have favored it.

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With EFE.