Tonight’s ref at Anfield: “worst I’ve seen” - Maradona

In charge on on-field affairs in tonight’s Europa League top-of-the bill clash between Liverpool and Manchester United at Anfield with be Spanish match official Carlos Velasco Carballo. The 44-year-old, from the Madrid Committee, is known for being a hard liner when it comes to discipline. A self-confessed "frustrated footballer", he has built up a great deal of experience at the top level as the man with the whistle. He is a FIFA-accredited referee and during his 12-year career has officiated at EURO 2012 and 2014 World Cup Brazil, notably - or maybe infamously, in the quarter final between Brazil and Colombia.

His performance in that game didn’t go down too well with Maradona, who was highly critical of the ref’s game, describing him as: “the most disastrous ref I have seen in 10 years. David Luiz systematically booted James seven times, but he, the ref, saw nothing. He let Brazil get away with blue  murder – all part of Blatter’s plan to see Brazil go through. Afterwards, I thought to myself, what game did I just watch? What a pile of shit”.

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Someone else who hasn’t been enthralled by Velasco Carballo's arbitrating is Gerard Piqué, who the ref sent off 55 minutes into Barcelona’s Spanish Supercup final last year for supposedly barking, “I shit on your whore mother” at the line official..