“Spanish Referee Jesus Gil Manzano to Officiate Milan-Inter Cup Derby in Champions League Semifinals”

After the draw in Naples which qualified Milan for the semi-finals of the Champions League, Stefano Pioli had recalled the victory on penalties over Rio Ave in the 2020 Europa League preliminaries. Perhaps the coach will smile, thinking that the referee of that match is been chosen for the cup derby with Inter. This is the Spanish Jesus Gil Manzano, who will lead a staff of compatriots made up of assistants Barbero Sevilla and Nevado Rodriguez, the fourth official Sanchez Martinez and the Vars Martinez Munuera and Hernandez Hernandez.

because they eat

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The choice of Roberto Rosetti surprises in some respects: Gil Manzano is one of the most esteemed referees of this season, but he is not the point of reference of his country in this sense, ranked after Mateu Lahoz and Del Cerro Grande. Not surprisingly, he had never been designated for such an important game in his career. Last year he didn’t go beyond the quarter-finals, two editions ago he even directed only two games in the group stage; he’s already made five appearances in this tournament, while in La Liga he was booed in the last Madrid derby. Among the matches for which he was chosen in the 2022-23 Champions League there was also the match between Milan and Dinamo Zagreb and he had also met the Rossoneri in the previously mentioned Europa League against Red Star. It is the first time that Inter will referee instead. Overall, the balance with the Italians is positive: eight victories, two draws and four defeats.

who is manzano

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The 39-year-old began his career as a referee when he was only eleven, due to his older brother Carlos wanting to take this path. Jesus already showed a certain aptitude for sport: he was a good goalkeeper but above all he had achieved excellent results in athletics. He can be considered with just cause the child prodigy of the Spanish referee class, because he made his debut in La Liga at the age of just 28 and shortly before turning 30 he was named international, making him the youngest ever in his own country to reach the finish line. He too will remain in the annals for being the first referee to send off Lionel Messi, in the 2021 Copa del Rey match against Athletic Bilbao. He is a great scholar: he has a degree in Environmental Sciences from the University of Salamanca, has obtained two masters (one on occupational risk prevention and one on renewable resources and energy engineering) and is continuing his academic career at the Faculty of Psychology.