Referee Daniele Orsato was captured shedding tears after blowing the final whistle in PSG’s Champions League semi-final defeat to Borussia Dortmund.
Mats Hummels’ second-half header sealed a 1-0 victory on the night and a 2-0 aggregate triumph for the Bundesliga side.
Orsato, a FIFA referee since 2010, faced several challenging decisions throughout the match. He opted to award a free kick instead of a penalty to PSG after Hummels seemed to foul Dembele just millimeters outside the home side’s penalty area.
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Emotional scenes ensued after the match as it marked Orsato’s final Champions League appearance. The 48-year-old Italian official is set to retire after Euro 2024.
Journalist Henry Winter praised Orsato’s performance, stating, “Italian ref Daniele Orsato showing how to run a game. Supported by VAR rather than governed by it. Strong, applied advantage, and decisive (rightly, quickly changed pen to fk. And Mbappe one prob 50-50). Respected by players.”