This Wednesday, as part of the 4th day of the Champions League, Paris Saint-Germain (19th) will face Atlético de Madrid (27th) at the Parc des Princes (kick-off 9pm, broadcast on Canal+ in France). Szymon Marciniak (43) has been chosen to referee the match. Marciniak has a wealth of experience, including 388 Polish league games and 48 Champions League appearances.
The man with the whistle will be assisted by Tomasz Listkiewicz and Adam Kupsik. The 4th referee will be Damian Kos. Video assistance will be provided by Tomasz Kwiatkowski and David Coote.
Yellow cards –
With Mr. Marciniak at the whistle, we can expect yellow cards to be handed out very quickly during the match. Indeed, while the French average per match is 3.53 (standard deviation 0.39), Wednesday’s referee has given an average of 3.97 yellows per match throughout his career in Ekstraklasa and the Champions League ( Transfermarkt figures). That’s very high, but let’s hope it’s not without dialogue.
Direct red cards –
On the contrary, the man on the whistle this Wednesday is not very severe when it comes to direct exclusions, as he has a low tendency to hand out direct red cards. In fact, Marciniak has given out 0.10 red cards per match in his career, whereas the French average per match is 0.17 (standard deviation 0.07). It’s therefore a question of warning before sending off, which requires a foul that is undoubtedly quite significant.
Second yellow cards –
Last but not least, Szymon Marciniak has a habit of sending players off after their first yellow card in a match, as he has given the same player a second caution an average of 0.11 times per match. This is well above the French average of 0.09 (standard deviation 0.03). With many yellows and few reds to begin with, this is relatively logical. It’s up to the players to be vigilant.
Penalties –
Finally, when it comes to penalties, the man on the whistle on Wednesday is higher than average, with 0.42 penalties whistled per match, compared with an average of 0.34 in Ligue 1 (standard deviation 0.08).
