Istvan Kovacs, 40 years old, arbitrates at this time the final of the Champions League between Inter and PSG. All decisions and moments with the “central” in the main role can be pursued on gsp.ro.
Live »The most important moments of Istvan Kovacs in PSG – Inter:
min. 47. The first bigger foul of the match. Pacho breaks Thuram at the edge of the box. Istvan Kovacs does not give warning. No one protested.
Present at the break in the GSP Live Special Studio, Raul Rusescu and Mihai Teja praised the performance of Istvan Kovacs:
- Raul Rusescu: “Exactly what he has to do. He interpreted each phase very well. Help the match. So finals you will still arbitrate! There were no tense moments. Some had the ball, others ran after it.”
- Mihai Teja: “Here we wanted to talk. You saw interruptions? The game was cursive. That is why the referee does not come out. That and you must! Analyze the minutes.
Final of the half. Arbitration without mistake for Istvan Kovacs. Nor was he not tested at any time. The footballers of the two finalists saw the game. No simulations, without exaggerations, no hardness and without protests.
min. 34: Very easy match for Istvan Kovacs' brigade so far.
6 faultsdictated Istvan Kovacs within the first 25 minutes
min. 21: Another cursive action of PSG, a counterattack of two. Again, Istvan Kovacs had no reason to get involved.
min. 12: Hakimi opens the score. A beautiful collective action, no reason for Istvan Kovacs or those in the Var room.
Hakimi, empty in front of the empty gate / photo: Gettyimages
min. 7: And a first contested decision, a foul in favor of PSG, right side, near the corner of the land. Bastons pushed two, and the assistant Mihai Marica signaled. Italian supporters are hindering.
Photo: Tv @digi Sport Capture 1
min. 3: Istvan Kovacs's first whistle comes after 80 seconds, when two touches Calhanoglu's arm on the face. Fault for inter.
Photo: Tv @digi Sport Capture 1
The final started!
Istvan Kovacs is the third Romanian referee who officiates a final of the Champions Leagueafter Ion Crăciunescu, in 1995 (AJAX-Milan 1-0), and the late Nicolae Rainea, in 1983 (Hamburg-Juventus 1-0).
Curious is that, in both cases, the formations in the “boot” left the land defeated. However, the “central” from Carei has proven to be a true “talisman” for the teams in Italy In the previous two continental finals he led: Rome-Feyenoord 1-0, in the first final in the history of Conference League, and Atalanta-Leverkuse 3-0, in the Europa League final that ended an impressive series of matches without defeat for “pharmacists”.
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This season, Kovacs also refereeed 7 other parties in the Champions League: Real Madrid-Dortmund 5-2, Inter-Arsenal 1-0, Bayern-PSG 1-0, Red Star-PSG 2-3, Juventus-Benfica 0-2 (group phase) / Real Madrid-Manchester City 3-1 (play-off), Liver -fo-1-4, 1-1, 1-1, 1-4 at penalties (finals optimal).
It was amazing to receive the call from Roberto Rosetti. It was a very happy moment and a overwhelming sensation, after so many years of work, to be designated for the most important match in the world. I have many favorite memories of the Champions League. One of them is from 1997, when Borussia Dortmund won, and Lars Ricken scored a gorgeous goal immediately after entering the field.
The second is from 1999, when Manchester United returned the score in the last moments. Every month I was watching a show called “Euro Goals”, an hour of European football, and I dreamed with ardor to be part of this competition.
– Istvan Kovacs, in an interview with UEFA, before the final
