Jérémie Pignard to referee Sunderland v AZ Alkmaar after recent PSG flashpoint | OneFootball

French referee Jérémie Pignard will take charge of Sunderland’s historic Europa League opener against Eredivisie side AZ Alkmaar at the Stadium of Light on Wednesday night. UEFA confirmed the appointment and the wider officiating team.

The 39-year-old has had an eventful start to the season, issuing nine yellow cards across two Ligue 1 matches. He also oversaw a stormy French Super Cup, where Lens beat Champions League winners PSG 1-0 through former Newcastle United winger Florian Thauvin.

In that game he dismissed Lens defender Kyllian Antonio for a poor challenge and PSG left-back Nuno Mendes for violent conduct late on. Pignard described Mendes’ elbow on Michal Skoras as a violent off-the-ball strike, prompting anger from PSG and fears of a long ban. Mendes received a three-match suspension and returned in Sunday’s 1-0 win at Stade Brestois.

Pignard has already officiated in Europe this term, handling Conference League qualifiers as Copenhagen beat Debrecen 5-1 and Maccabi Tel Aviv drew 1-1 with Lugano. He has refereed an English club only once, Chelsea’s 2-0 home win over Servette in Conference League qualifying in August 2024.

He will be assisted by compatriots Aurélien Drouet and Hicham Zakrani, with Romain Lissorgue as fourth official. Bastien Dechepy will operate as Video Assistant Referee, while Croatian Mario Zebec has been appointed assistant VAR, the only non-French official.

Source: Sunderland Echo

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