UEFA reveal referee for Hearts v Benfica | OneFootball

UEFA has already appointed the officiating team for the match between Hearts and Benfica, corresponding to the second leg of the third qualifying round for access to the Europa League league phase, for which the Eagles qualified after beating St. Gallen. The European body announced this Friday the appointment of Sander van der Eijk to officiate the match scheduled for 7:45 p.m. next Thursday, August 13, at Tynecastle Park, in Edinburgh.

The 35-year-old Dutch referee will be accompanied by his compatriots Rens Bluemink and Stefan De Groot, who will serve as assistant referees. Alex Bos has been chosen to act as the fourth official in the Europa League clash.

In the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) room, UEFA entrusted the responsibility to Dennis Higler, who will have Erwin Blank as assistant video referee (AVAR), completing an officiating team made up entirely of officials from the Netherlands.

The choice made by the body that oversees European football received a positive assessment from former referee Hugo Gil, who highlighted the strong connection between all the officials appointed for the match between the Scots and Benfica.

"It is extremely rare to see such a homogeneous European officiating team, with practically all those involved trained in the same school. This is no coincidence. UEFA likes groups that already work together in domestic competitions, because the understanding between the on-field referee and the VAR room is half the battle won when decisions have to be made quickly, such as a tight offside or contact in the box", said the former official, praising the strategy adopted by UEFA’s Refereeing Committee for this European Benfica fixture.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.