Official, Szymon Marciniak receives an unprecedented punishment: 'Uefa has already fired him'

Barça felt greatly harmed by Szymon Marciniak, the Polish referee who had previously also disallowed Julián Álvarez's penalty goal against Real Madrid in the Champions League. Both Barça and Atlético de Madrid ended up very disappointed with UEFA, especially because Szymon Marciniak kept refereeing and being rewarded despite his multiple glaring mistakes. Now everything has changed and, as e-Notícies has been able to confirm, Szymon Marciniak will receive a virtually unprecedented punishment from UEFA, the highest European soccer authority.

Barça couldn't reach the Champions League final held in Munich and the club believes it was because of Szymon Marciniak, the main referee of the match. Szymon Marciniak was very erratic and clearly harmed Barça, who were eliminated in the second leg of the semifinals against Inter. Joan Laporta drafted a formal complaint to UEFA and at FC Barcelona they thought it wouldn't be useful, but in the end, that wasn't the case: unprecedented punishment for Marciniak.

In recent hours, the International Football Association Board (IFAB) has issued a statement clarifying the rule that caused the most controversy in the UEFA Champions League, with Marciniak as the main figure. According to IFAB, the disallowed penalty for Julián Álvarez should've been retaken, since the Argentine Atleti player had no clear intention of hitting the ball twice. In other words, IFAB has acknowledged that Szymon Marciniak was wrong and that he didn't correctly interpret the spirit of the rule.

Official, Szymon Marciniak receives unprecedented punishment: "UEFA has already removed him"

After this "slap on the wrist" from IFAB to UEFA, Szymon Marciniak's image has been greatly damaged, so actions will be taken immediately. UEFA's punishment will be something unprecedented, according to sources from FC Barcelona, who state that Szymon Marciniak will find it very difficult to keep refereeing at the highest level in the Champions League.

Szymon Marciniak is one of the most highly regarded European referees and will be present at the FIFA Club World Cup. However, Szymon Marciniak could receive a severe punishment from UEFA, since he hasn't been up to the task in two of the main Champions League matches. Szymon Marciniak was already punished by not refereeing the Champions League final, but after this new reprimand from IFAB, the Polish referee could once again be punished in a forceful manner.

UEFA is considering punishing Szymon Marciniak and the idea of the European body is to leave the Polish referee out of refereeing during the group stage of the Champions League. After the Club World Cup to be held in the US, Szymon Marciniak would be left out of refereeing the Champions League: we're talking about the initial group stage. UEFA's decision seems clear and unequivocal, but it won't be made official until the matches of that initial phase of the Champions League are set.