Match Officials: Alejandro Hernández to referee Manchester City vs Galatasaray | OneFootball

UEFA have appointed a predominantly Spanish team of match officials to oversee proceedings between Manchester City and Galatasaray this week.

Pep Guardiola’s side recorded their first win of 2026 in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon as they dismissed of relegation-threatened Wolves at the Etihad Stadium courtesy of a 2-0 victory.

Goals from Omar Marmoush and Antoine Semenyo were enough to separate the two sides and, perhaps most importantly, cut the gap between themselves at Arsenal at the summit of the division to just four points after Manchester United’s 2-3 win at the Emirates Stadium.

Manchester City will be determined to transfer some of that confidence into their European encounter, and the final fixture of this season’s league phase as a win would potentially secure them an automatic place in the last-16 of the Champions League.

Things could have been a lot more routine this week had City managed to record a win in the Arctic Circle last time out, but three goals were enough to put the game beyond any doubt as Bodo/Glimt shocked the football world with their first ever Champions League win.

Now, ahead of the meeting between Manchester City and Galatasaray this week, UEFA have announced the list of match officials to oversee proceedings at the Etihad Stadium!

Match Referee

Lanzarote’s Alejandro Hernández will be the man to oversee proceedings from the role of match referee at the Etihad Stadium on Wednesday night, leading a largely Spanish team of officials for the contest.

The 43-year-old has taken charge of a total of 18 matches across all competitions so far this campaign, issuing 72 yellow cards in that time, three straight red cards, and awarding 16 penalties in the process.

Hernandez’s fixtures have so far come in the Spanish top-flight, Copa del Rey, the UEFA Champions League, and the qualification round of Europe’s premier club competition.

Despite his vast experience in the game, Hernandez has never previously officiated Manchester City in any competition, although his two outings in the Champions League this season have involved English sides.

The referee not only oversaw Liverpool’s remarkable 1-4 home defeat to PSV in November, but also went on to officiate Chelsea’s 2-1 away defeat to Italian side Atalanta in the following month.

Assistant Referees

Accompanying Alejandro Hernandez this week will be fellow Spanish officials in José Naranjo and Diego Sánchez Rojo, who have been appointed as the contest’s assistant referees at the Etihad Stadium.

Video Assistant Referees

Monitoring events between Manchester City and Galatasaray from the VAR booth will be Spanish referee Carlos del Cerro Grande as the Video Assistant Referee, sitting alongside German official Robert Schröder as the Assistant Video Assistant Referee.

Fourth Official

Standing between the two dugouts at the Etihad Stadium and completing an all-Spanish team of officials on the ground for Manchester City against Galatasaray will be the fourth official on the night, José Luis Munuera.