Domestic League - Referee Appointments: SERIE A, PREMIER LEAGUE, LIGUE 1, PRIMERA DIVISION, BUNDESLIGA (29th January - 3rd February)

Italy - Serie A
Matchday 22

30.01.2016 15:00 CET

Carpi -Palermo
Referee: Nicola Rizzoli
Assistant Referee 1: Alessandro Giallatini
Assistant Referee 2: Sergio Ranghetti
Additional assistant referee 1: Luca Banti
Additional assistant referee 2: Antonio Rapuano 
Fourth Official: Giuseppe De Pinto 

30.01.2016 18:00 CET

Atalanta - Sassuolo  
Referee: Claudio Gavillucci 
Assistant Referee 1: Valerio Pegorin 
Assistant Referee 2: Ciro Carbone
Additional assistant referee 1: Gianluca Rocchi
Additional assistant referee 2: Francesco Paolo Saia 
Fourth Official: Giorgio Schenone

30.01.2016 20:45 CET

AS Roma - Frosinone
Referee: Marco Guida 
Assistant Referee 1: Andrea Crispo 
Assistant Referee 2:  Mauro Vivenzi
Additional assistant referee 1: Paolo Tagliavento
Additional assistant referee 2:  Eugenio Abbattista
Fourth Official: Matteo Passeri

31.01.2016 12:30 CET

Chievo Verona - Juventus
Referee: Daniele Doveri 
Assistant Referee 1: Fabrizio Posado 
Assistant Referee 2: Claudio La Rocca
Additional assistant referee 1: Marco Di Bello
Additional assistant referee 2: Federico La Penna 
Fourth Official: Giacomo Paganessi

31.01.2016 15:00 CET

Bologna - Sampdoria
Referee: Michael Fabbri 
Assistant Referee 1: Filippo Meli 
Assistant Referee 2: Alessandro Lo Cicero
Additional assistant referee 1: Andrea Gervasoni
Additional assistant referee 2: Luigi Nasca 
Fourth Official: Espedito Marco Musolino

31.01.2016 15:00 CET

Genoa CFC - ACF Fiorentina
Referee: Piero Giacomelli 
Assistant Referee 1: Salvatore Longo 
Assistant Referee 2: Fabio Pietro Galloni
Additional assistant referee 1: Massimiliano Irrati 
Additional assistant referee 2: Fabrizio Pasqua 
Fourth Official: Mauro Tonolini 

31.01.2016 15:00 CET

SSC Napoli- Empoli
Referee: Davide Massa 
Assistant Referee 1: Gianluca Vuoto 
Assistant Referee 2: Alfonso Marrazzo
Additional assistant referee 1: Angelo Cervellera
Additional assistant referee 2: Luca Pairetto 
Fourth Official:  Francesco De Luca

31.01.2016 15:00 CET

Torino - Hellas Verona
Referee: Maurizio Mariani
Assistant Referee 1: Filippo Valeriani 
Assistant Referee 2: Valentino Fiorito
Additional assistant referee 1:  Paolo Valeri
Additional assistant referee 2: Gianluca Aureliano 
Fourth Official: Riccardo Di Fiore

31.01.2016 15:00 CET

Udinese - SS Lazio
Referee: Domenico Celi
Assistant Referee 1: Lorenzo Manganelli 
Assistant Referee 2: Alberto Tegoni
Additional assistant referee 1: Carmine Russo
Additional assistant referee 2: Aleandro Di Paolo 
Fourth Official:: Andrea Padovan

31.01.2016 20:45 CET

AC Milan - FC Internazionale
Referee: Antonio Damato
Assistant Referee 1: Elenito Giovanni Di Liberatore
Assistant Referee 2: Giulio Dobosz
Additional assistant referee 1: Paolo Silvio Mazzoleni
Additional assistant referee 2: Gianpaolo Calvarese
Fourth Official: Fabiano Preti

England - Premier League 

Matchday 24

02.02.2016 20:45 CET

Arsenal - Southampton
Referee: Lee Mason
Assistant Referee 1: Andy Halliday
Assistant Referee 2: Matt Wilkes
Fourth Official: Craig Pawson

02.02.2016 20:45 CET

Leicester City - Liverpool
Referee: Andre Marriner
Assistant Referee 1: Lee Betts
Assistant Referee 2: Peter Kirkup
Fourth Official: Simon Hooper

02.02.2016 20:45 CET

Norwich City - Tottenham Hotspur
Referee: Kevin Friend
Assistant Referee 1: Richard West
Assistant Referee 2: Gary Beswick
Fourth Official: Graham Scott

02.02.2016 20:45 CET

Sunderland - Manchester City
Referee: Stuart Attwell
Assistant Referee 1: Michael Mullarkey
Assistant Referee 2: Stephen Child
Fourth Official: Paul Tierney

02.02.2016 20:45 CET

West Ham - Aston Villa
Referee: Jonathan Moss
Assistant Referee 1: Simon Bennett
Assistant Referee 2: Jake Collin
Fourth Official: Mike Dean

02.02.2016 21:00 CET

Crystal Palace - Bournemouth
Referee: Mike Jones
Assistant Referee 1:Simon Beck
Assistant Referee 2: Ian Hussin
Fourth Official: Keith Stroud
Blog Referee Observer: Harry (ENG)

02.02.2016 21:00 CET

Manchester United - Stoke City
Referee: Roger East
Assistant Referee 1: Darren Cann
Assistant Referee 2: Mike McDonough
Fourth Official: Andy Madley

02.02.2016 21:00 CET

West Bromwich Albion - Swansea
Referee: Neil Swarbrick
Assistant Referee 1: Scott Ledger
Assistant Referee 2: Mike Salisbury
Fourth Official: Tony Harrington

03.02.2016 20:45 CET

Everton - Newcastle
Referee: Craig Pawson
Assistant Referee 1: David Bryan
Assistant Referee 2: Stuart Burt
Fourth Official: Roger East

03.02.2016 20:45 CET
Watford - Chelsea

Referee: Mike Dean
Assistant Referee 1: John Brooks
Assistant Referee 2: Simon Long
Fourth Official: Kevin Friend

France - Ligue 1

Matchday 23

29.01.2016 20:30 CET
Olympique de Marseille - LOSC Lille
Referee: Benoît Bastien
Assistant Referee 1: Nicolas Henninot
Assistant Referee 2: Hicham Zakrani
Fourth Official:  Alexandre Castro

30.01.2016 17:00 CET
Angers SCO - AS monaco
Referee: Ruddy Buquet
Assistant Referee 1: Fabrice Plancon
Assistant Referee 2: Guillaume Debart
Fourth Official: Romain Delpech

30.01.2016 20:00 CET
ESTAC Troyes - FC Nantes 
Referee: Johan Hamel 
Assistant Referee 1: Djemel Zitouni
Assistant Referee 2: Julien Aube
Fourth Official: Romain Lissorgue

30.01.2016 20:00 CET
FC Lorient - Stade de Reims
Referee: Jérôme Miguelgorry
Assistant Referee 1: Christophe Mouysset
Assistant Referee 2: Frédéric Hebrard
Fourth Official:  Romain Galibert

30.01.2016 20:00 CET
SC Bastia - Olympique Lyonnais
Referee: Benoît Millot
Assistant Referee 1: Cedric Moreau
Assistant Referee 2: Stephan Luzi
Fourth Official:  William Lavis

30.01.2016 20:00 CET
Toulouse FC - En Avant Guingamp
Referee: Sébastien Moreira
Assistant Referee 1: Cyril Saint Cricq Lompre
Assistant Referee 2: Julien Pacelli
Fourth Official: Alexandre Perreau Niel

30.01.2016 20:00 CET
GFC Ajaccio - Montpellier Hérault SC
Referee: Bartolomeu Varela
Assistant Referee 1: David Benech
Assistant Referee 2: Ludovic Leducq
Fourth Official:  Karim Abed

31.01.2016 14:00 CET
SM Caen - OGC Nice
Referee: Stéphane Lannoy 
Assistant Referee 1: Mickaël Annonier
Assistant Referee 2: Mickaël Lamouche
Fourth Official: Thomas Leonard

31.01.2016 17:00 CET
Girondins de Bordeaux - Stade Rennais FC
Referee: Mikael Lesage
Assistant Referee 1: Anthony Bremont
Assistant Referee 2: Sébastien Denis
Fourth Official: Yohann Rouinsard

31.01.2016 21:00 CET
AS Saint-Étienne - Paris Saint Germain
Referee: Lionel Jaffredo
Assistant Referee 1: Tugdual Philippe
Assistant Referee 2: Régis Gaillard
Fourth Official: Olivier Thual

Spain - Primera Divisiòn   

Matchday 22

30.01.2016 16:00 CET
Fútbol Club Barcelona - Club Atlético de Madrid 

Referee: Alberto Undiano Mallenco
Assistant Referee 1: Roberto Díaz Pérez Del Palomar
Assistant Referee 2: Jesús Zancada Lobato
Fourth Official: Iosu Galech Apezteguía

30.01.2016 18:15 CET

Getafe Club de Fútbol - Athletic Club
Referee: Javier Estrada Fernández
Assistant Referee 1: Miguel Martínez Munuera
Assistant Referee 2: Francisco Javier Martín García
Fourth Official: Francisco Javier Fernández Vidal

30.01.2016 18:15 CET

Sociedad Deportiva Eibar - Málaga Club de Fútbol 
Referee: Antonio Miguel Mateu Lahoz
Assistant Referee 1: Pau Cebrián Devís
Assistant Referee 2: César García Fernández
Fourth Official:  Germán Cid Camacho

30.01.2016 20:30 CET

Villarreal Club de Fútbol - Granada Club de Fútbol 
Referee: Carlos Del Cerro Grande
Assistant Referee 1: Juan Carlos Yuste Jiménez
Assistant Referee 2: Abrahám Álvarez Cantón
Fourth Official: Pedro Eugenio Muñoz Piedra

30.01.2016 22:05 CET

Real Sociedad de Fútbol - Real Betis Balompié 
Referee: Eduardo Prieto Iglesias
Assistant Referee 1: Francisco Javier García Sabuco
Assistant Referee 2: Joan Méndez Mateo
Fourth Official: Albert Ávalos Martos

31.01.2016 12:00 CET

Sevilla Fútbol Club  - Levante Unión Deportiva 
Referee: Alfonso J. Álvarez Izquierdo
Assistant Referee 1: Jon Núñez Fernández
Assistant Referee 2: Iker De Francisco Grijalba
Fourth Official: Gustavo Rebollo López

31.01.2016 16:00 CET

Valencia Club de Fútbol  - Real Sporting de Gijón 
Referee: Jose Luis González González
Assistant Referee 1: José María Sánchez Santos
Assistant Referee 2: Ignacio Rubio Palomino
Fourth Official: Francisco Alejandro Navarro Fuentes

31.01.2016 18:15 CET

Unión Deportiva Las Palmas  - Real Club Celta de Vigo 
Referee: José María Sánchez Martínez
Assistant Referee 1: José Gallego García
Assistant Referee 2: Javier Martínez Nicolás
Fourth Official: Víctor Pérez Peraza

31.01.2016 20:30 CET

Real Madrid Club de Fútbol - Real Club Deportivo Espanyol de Barcelona 
Referee: Alejandro José Hernández Hernández
Assistant Referee 1: Teodoro Sobrino Magán
Assistant Referee 2: José Enrique Naranjo Pérez
Fourth Official:  Rubén Jiménez González

01.02.2016 20:30 CET

Real Club Deportivo de La Coruña - Rayo Vallecano de Madrid  
Referee: Iñaki Vicandi Garrido
Assistant Referee 1: Andoni Huerga Cermeño
Assistant Referee 2: Aitor Villate Martínez
Fourth Official: Aimar Velasco Arbaiza

Germany - Bundesliga 

Matchday 19

29.01.2016 20:30 CET

1. FSV Mainz 05 - Borussia Mönchengladbach
Referee: Benjamin Brand
Assistant Referee 1: Robert Schröder
Assistant Referee 2: Frederick Assmuth
Fourth Official: Marco Fritz

30.01.2016 15:30 CET

FC Augsburg - Eintracht Frankfurt
Referee: Sascha Stegemann
Assistant Referee 1: Christian Fischer
Assistant Referee 2: Soren Störks
Fourth Official: Guido Kleve

30.01.2016 15:30 CET

Bayer Leverkusen - Hannover 96
Referee: Tobias Welz
Assistant Referee 1: Rafael Foltyn
Assistant Referee 2: Dr. Martin Thomsen
Fourth Official: Tobias Christ

30.01.2016 15:30 CET

Borussia Dortmund - FC Ingolstadt
Referee: Guido Winkmann
Assistant Referee 1: Christian Bandurski
Assistant Referee 2: Arno Blos
Fourth Official: Christian Dingert

30.01.2016 15:30 CET

SV Darmstadt 98 - Schalke 04
Referee: Daniel Siebert
Assistant Referee 1: Florian Heft
Assistant Referee 2: Jan Seidel
Fourth Official:  Knut Kircher

30.01.2016 15:30 CET

Werder Bremen - Hertha BSC
Referee: Bastian Dankert
Assistant Referee 1: Harm Osmers
Assistant Referee 2: René Rohde
Fourth Official: Florian Meyer

30.01.2016 18:30 CET

VfB Stuttgart - Hamburger SV
Referee: Günter Perl
Assistant Referee 1: Thomas Stein
Assistant Referee 2: Michael Emmer
Fourth Official: Deniz Aytekin

31.01.2016 15:30 CET

VfL Wolfsburg - 1. FC Köln
Referee: Wolfgang Stark
Assistant Referee 1: Mike Pickel
Assistant Referee 2: Martin Petersen
Fourth Official: Felix Zwayer

31.01.2016 17:30 CET

Bayern München - 1899 Hoffenheim
Referee: Dr. Jochen Drees
Assistant Referee 1: Timo Gerach
Assistant Referee 2: Christian Gittelmann
Fourth Official: Frank Willenborg

FA Cup Fourth Round Referee Designations

The Emirates FA Cup
Fourth Round Proper
3pm GMT, Saturday 30 January 2016 unless marked otherwise

1 West Bromwich Albion FC v Peterborough United FC
Referee Kevin Friend
Assistant Referees Simon Long & James Mainwaring
Fourth Official Dean Whitestone

2 Bolton Wanderers FC v Leeds United AFC
Referee Andre Marriner
Assistant Referees Simon Beck & Matthew Dicicco
Fourth Official Nigel Miller

3 Arsenal v Burnley FC 
Referee Roger East
Assistant Referees Simon Bennett & Marc Perry
Fourth Official Frederick Graham

4 Derby County FC v Manchester United FC Friday 29 January (7.55pm)
Referee Anthony Taylor
Assistant Referees Peter Kirkup & David Bryan
Fourth Official Stephen Martin

5 Reading FC v Walsall FC
Referee Peter Bankes
Assistant Referees Amy Fearn & Adrian Tranter
Fourth Official Brendan Malone

6 Liverpool FC v West Ham United Saturday 30 January (5.30pm)
Referee Martin Atkinson
Assistant Referees Stuart Burt & Edward Smart
Fourth Official Geoff Eltringham

7 Aston Villa FC v Manchester City FC
Referee Michael Jones
Assistant Referees Gary Beswick & Adrian Holmes
Fourth Official James Adcock

8 Shrewsbury Town FC v Sheffield Wednesday FC
Referee Paul Tierney
Assistant Referees Philip Dermott & Timothy Wood
Fourth Official Ben Toner

9 Nottingham Forest FC v Watford FC 
Referee Neil Swarbrick
Assistant Referees Jake Collin & Michael Salisbury
Fourth Official Carl Boyeson

10 Carlisle United v Everton FC Sunday 31 January (1.30pm)
Referee Lee Mason
Assistant Referees Michael McDonough & Richard West
Fourth Official Sebastian Stockbridge

11 Crystal Palace FC v Stoke City FC
Referee Mark Clattenburg
Assistant Referees Mark Scholes & Scott Ledger
Fourth Official Simon Hooper

12 Oxford United FC v Blackburn Rovers FC 
Referee Andy Davies
Assistant Referees Alan Clayton & Craig Hicks
Fourth Official Christopher Sarginson

13 Portsmouth FC v AFC Bournemouth 
Referee Michael Dean
Assistant Referees Matthew Wilkes & Harry Lennard
Fourth Official Gavin Ward

14 Colchester United v Tottenham Hotspur Saturday 30 January (12:45pm)
Referee Michael Oliver
Assistant Referees John Brooks & Lee Betts
Fourth Official Oliver Langford

15 Bury FC v Hull City
Referee Darren Bond
Assistant Referees Bob Roberts & James Bell
Fourth Official Ross Joyce

16 Milton Keynes Dons FC v Chelsea Sunday 31 January (4pm)
Referee Jonathan Moss
Assistant Referees Adam Nunn & Steve Child
Fourth Official Iain Williamson

FA Cup Third Round Blog Report (Giovanni)

Wycombe Wanderers v Aston Villa (12:45pm, Saturday 9 January)
Referee Michael Oliver
Assistant Referees Michael Salisbury & Steve Child
Fourth Official Stephen Martin

Blog Observer: Giovanni (ITA)

Remarks: The 30 years old international referee Michael Oliver has been selected for one of the most interesting matches of the third round and the atmosphere was of the best to assist to a great football afternoon.

Michael Oliver has come since 2015 very positive and the games umpired give him action so far and he is considered one of the best young referees both in national field and international.

The game played at the lunchtime has been very discontinuous. It passes from moments of tension to moments very bland where the tiredness has had the upper hand due to the heavy conditions of the pitch.

In the first 15 minutes of game it has been a game of study where the teams have never sunk a  hit on goal.

The first true provision that has had to take has been at 16' of the first half. He followed well the action and graces to his positioning he succeeded in seeing a push of #15 (WYC) on #5 (AST). 

In the central part of the first half, the game flows away smooth without problems and at 28' he made to feel his presence in the penalty area calling to the order the negligent players. 

At 35’ good call of the 1^st assistant that saw a correct offside. Flag on #9 (AST)

On the other side of the field his colleague did the same with a good call Flag on #19 (WYC)

The second half immediately began with the stroke. Perfect Positioning of the referee aimed the finger toward the middle area without any doubt. It was penalty! Foul by #15 (AST) on #10 (WYC). YC for the player who committed the foul.

At 51’ another good disciplinary management. Correct YC for #16 (WYC) who with a trip stopped a situation on the midfield.

On 71’ he managed very well a situation that would have been able to spring polemics. He interposed among the players and he stopped the squabble without the use of the cards (WYC’s player delayed the resumption of the play and AST’s player tried to tear the ball from the hands of the opponent).

On 79’ he showed a good interpretation of the advantage rule. #7 (WYC) on #5 (AST).

On 83’ flag on #7 (WYC). Great job by AR1.

On 90+1 correct YC for #19 (WYC) to have committed a tactical foul on #18 (AST).

Taking everything into account the match officials competition have completed their assignment without any mistake. The concentration and the simplicity have been the keys of their refereeing.

Great job of all the officials!

REF, Michael Oliver: 4.5

AR1, Michael Salisbury: 4.0

AR2, Steve Child: 4.0

4TH, Stephen Martin: 4.0

FA Cup Third Round Blog Reports (Harry)

An analysis by Giovanni and myself, Harry, of featured games in this weekend's FA Cup (all marks are calculated using the Football Association Referee Observers Mark Scheme, which can be found at the bottom of this page or in an 'FA Observers Handbook'):

Exeter City 2-2 Liverpool (7.55pm, Friday 8 January)
Referee: Stuart Attwell
Assistant Referees: John Brooks & David Bryan
Fourth Official: Tim Robinson
Blog Observer: Harry (ENG)
Remarks: Stuart Attwell was certainly a surprising choice for arguably the most high profile match of the round. He refereed his Premier League match at the tender age of twenty-five, but his case is one that is certainly one that shows the danger of 'fast-tracking' match officials. After a four year stint among the 'Select Group' of Premier League referees he was unceremoniously demoted back to the Football League in 2012. He has been slowly working his way back up to the top of England's referee ladder in the Football League (where he has proved to be among the best, joining A Madley & P Tierney et al.), and tonight's match was maybe a very important juncture in deciding whether he would be promoted again to the Select Group. This is probably his biggest match since the Under-19 European Championship Final of 2011 in Chiajna, another referee at that championship was Clément Turpin...
Attwell tonight for my taste delivered a very good performance. He dealt with all the penalty situations well, especially in some situations where with the naked eye it seemed he missed a penalty. The only potential blemish in this regard could be a potential penalty before LVP scored for 1-1, however I think not awarding a penalty was an acceptable decison (or signalling an advanatage)- but either way LVP did receive an advantage anyway in the equaliser!
In terms of cards Attwell issued none this evening! Moreover I could not find any situations where he missed a mandatory caution (or sending off!). There were a couple of situations where the referee could have opted for a YC however decided not to, which proved to be a good decisions as the referee remained in control. This also testament surely to his soft skills
Other officials performed well, especially AR1 Brooks who is proving to one of the best ARs in England at time of writing!     
Overall Stuart Attwell showed a good performance in a match which presented a few challenges, and took all the crucial decisions correctly. This surely can only have a positive impact on Attwell's future appointments. 4.0

Wycombe Wanderers v Aston Villa (12:45pm, Saturday 9 January)
Referee: Michael Oliver
Assistant Referees: Michael Salisbury & Steve Child
Fourth Official: Stephen Martin
Blog Observer: Giovanni (ITA)
Remarks: 


Arsenal v Sunderland (3:00pm, Saturday 9 January)
Referee Martin Atkinson
Assistant Referees Mark Scholes & Matthew Wilkes
Fourth Official Lee Collins
Blog Observer: Harry (ENG)
Remarks: For Martin Atkinson, 2015 was a breakthrough year. Much improved performances, combined also with a thinner UEFA Elite Group, saw the Englishman given a UEFA Champions League Semi-Final, and a UEFA Europa League in Warsaw- where he applauded by both sets of spectators as he collected his medal. On a domestic front Atkinson was again given many of the top fixtures in English football. A completely regular appointment in North London.
Martin Atkinson again displayed a good performance in an easy match. His foul selection was good, however the most important decision was taken at 3-1 when he rejected a penalty appeal from ARL#12. From my position in the stands my initial reaction was penalty, however I was slightly blocked, and I would back Atkinson on the decision given his close proximity to the incident. 
He issued no disciplinary actions this evening, and none were required, possibly minus a YC for 'SPA' in additional time in the second half. He again showed a very good personality which helped control the match.
Overall Martin Atkinson performed well in a match where he wasn't really challenged. This can only have a positive influence in his future appointments for my taste. 3.5

Manchester United v Sheffield United (5.30pm, Saturday 9 January)
Referee Andre Marriner
Assistant Referees Adam Nunn & Stuart Burt
Fourth Official James Adcock 
Blog Observer: Giovanni (ITA)
Remarks: