Tiempo de Revisión says Martínez Munuera chose the wrong moment to stop Sevilla-Barcelona

Tiempo de Revisión believes Juan Martínez Munuera did not choose the right moment to interrupt Sevilla-Barcelona. The review concerns the stoppage called by the referee in the 55th minute following Andreas Christensen’s injury.

The educational audiovisual programme, created to examine controversial incidents and explain the criteria applied, raises the question of whether the stoppage was justified. In its sequence, it explains that Christensen remained on the ground after a challenge with Robbie Ure while play continued. Juan Martínez Munuera then waited a few seconds to assess the player’s condition before stopping the match, amid fears of a serious injury.

According to the refereeing body, the referee “loses the context of the action by attending to the player”. It recalls that a referee must stop play in the event of a serious injury, but considers that the optimal moment to do so “could have been improved”.

According to the sequence shown, Sevilla had possession at the time, still far from the Barcelona goal. The review therefore considers that the referee should either have stopped play immediately or waited until the end of Sevilla’s attacking move.