A Champions League referee has reportedly been suspended from officiating after he allegedly threatened to kill a player during a game.
Italian referee Fabio Maresca was set to be fourth official for Tuesday’s Champions League fixture between PSV and Sporting Lisbon but was stood down at late notice.
That’s because the 43-year-old is accused of making a death threat towards a player whilst refereeing a match in the Kuwait Premier League last Friday.
Taking charge charge of the fixture between Kuwait SC and Al-Arabi, Maresca is alledged to have said ‘see you next time, I’ll kill you’ to Al-Arabi star Khald Al Mershed.
However, conflicting reports suggest that the referee simply told the player ‘see you next time’.
Reports from Corriere della Sera suggest that Maresca has avoided a ban in Kuwait but he is set to be taken off officiating duties in Italy for a month.
The 43-year-old began officiating in Italy’s professional leagues in 2011 and has been involved in European competition since 2018.
He has taken charge of one Serie A match so far this season which was a 2-2 draw between AC Milan and Torino on the opening week of the season.
Last season, Maresca was involved in two flashpoint incidents whilst refereeing in Serie A.
In May, he sent off Massimiliano Allegri in the Coppa Italia final after the then-Juventus boss furiously confronted the fourth official.
And earlier in January, he was officiating a match between Milan and Udinese that was marred by the racist abuse aimed at goalkeeper Mike Maignan.
When racist chants from Udinese fans were heard for a second time, Maresca suspensded the game before Maignan and his fellow Milan players walked off the pitch.
‘I behaved like a big brother and felt sincere sadness for Maignan, who clearly was hurt emotionally by all this,’ Maresca told news agency Ansa at the time.
‘In those moments, I felt awful for the player, but also for the whole situation. Anyone who loves this sport – players, referees or fans – feels pain seeing it interrupted by such boorish behaviour by a few individuals. It is important to remember these are just a few people and we must not generalise.’
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