Italian referee to officiate Liverpool vs Atlético in the UEFA Champions League

UEFA has appointed Italian referee Davide Massa to officiate the match between Liverpool and Atlético in the opening round of the UEFA Champions League, scheduled to take place at Anfield.

According to "Mundo Deportivo", this will be the 11th European encounter between Liverpool and Atlético, coming just days before the anniversary of their last meeting, which ended in a 3-2 victory for Liverpool at Anfield.

Liverpool's match will be the fourth officiated by Davide Massa for Atlético in European competitions, having previously overseen three matches for the team, during which Atlético achieved one win, one draw, and one loss.

Atlético suffered a defeat against Arsenal last season, losing 4-0 in London, while the team won two seasons ago against Bayer Leverkusen in the same stage. The third encounter ended in a 0-0 draw against Club Brugge in the group stage of the 2018/2019 season.

As for Liverpool, this will be the second match that Massa officiates for the team, having previously managed one match in the first leg of the Round of 16 two seasons ago, when Liverpool lost to Paris Saint-Germain by a goal to nil at the Parc des Princes.

Massas is considered one of the most prominent Italian referees, but he did not make the list of referees chosen by FIFA to participate in the FIFA World Cup. The match between Liverpool and Atlético will be his third European match this season and his fourth across various competitions.

The Italian referee will be assisted by his compatriot Marco Di Bello in the Video Assistant Referee room.