With the furore raised on the appointment of Norwegian Tom Henning Ovrebo and his subsequent dismal performance, it seems UEFA’s governing body are hell bent or annoying the manager of Manchester United, Alex Ferguson, with the appointment of Massimo Busacca as the referee for the Champions League final with Barcelona on Wednesday.
Busacca was the official in last season’s semi-final first leg between both sides and was criticised by Ferguson for not awarding a second penalty after Cristiano Ronaldo missed an earlier one.
The United boss had raged after Ronaldo appeared to be up-ended inside the area in the first half during the goalless draw at the Nou Camp: “I thought it was a penalty. The world and his wife would think that.
It’s hard enough to ask for one penalty. You’re doing well if you get one. To ask for two…well, I wasn’t surprised that we didn’t get it.”
The hope, this time, is that the centre of attraction would not be the officials but the footballing spectacle that will be put on show when world club champions, Manchester United face Barcelona in Stadio Olympico in Rome.
UEFA name Massimo Busacca to referee finals
Gregg Zaun
Huh Jung-Moo
Shaun White