Cakir to ref 2015 Champs Lge Final
- By Adam Higgins
- May 21, 2015
- 6 min read
CUNEYT Cakir will be the first Turkish referee to take charge of a European final after being handed the Uefa Champions League Final between Barcelona and Juventus in Berlin on June 6.
The 38-year-old has been selected by the Uefa Referees Committee to oversee the prestigious showpiece at the Olympiastadion in the German capital.
He will be assisted by fellow countrymen Bahattin Duran and Tarik Ongun with Huseyin Gocek and Baris Simsek, also from Turkey, acting as additional assistant referees.
The reserve assistant will be Mustafa Emre Eyisoy (Turkey) and Cakir will be assessed by former Scottish World Cup referee Hugh Dallas.
The fourth official will be Sweden’s Jonas Eriksson, who was widely expected to be picked as referee himself for the culmination of Europe’s premier competition in the 2014-15 season.
England’s Martin Atkinson was also picked to referee the Europa League Final between Sevilla and Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk at the National Stadium in Warsaw, Poland, on May 27.
Domestically, Cakir officiated 23 Turkish Super Lig games last season but his continental activities have mainly come in the Europa League of late.
He officiated in the last 32, last 16 and quarter-final rounds of the tournament including Napoli’s 2-2 draw with Wolfsburg in April which saw the Italian side progress to the semi-finals.
The Istanbul whistler handled three Champions League group stage matches as well as the last 16 first leg between Paris St Germain and Chelsea at the Parc des Princes in February.
Vastly experienced: At the peak of his career at the tender age of 38, Cakir has handled 70 Uefa fixtures since his debut as a fourth official in 2003
His busy campaign also consisted of three Euro 2016 qualifiers with the first being England’s 2-0 win over Switzerland in Basel last September in which he booked Three Lions midfielder Fabian Delph inside the first two minutes.
But he missed several weeks in December and January while recovering from pneumothorax, the collapsing of a lung when air escapes.
The appointment comes after a successful World Cup for the insurance salesman last summer in Brazil during which he oversaw two group stage matches and the semi-final between Holland and Argentina which the latter won on penalties.
Cakir was also one of 12 referees to travel to the 2012 European Championships in Poland and Ukraine where he played a prominent role.
He was in the middle for co-hosts Ukraine’s 2-1 win over Sweden and Italy’s 2-0 win over the Republic of Ireland, where he sent off Irish midfielder Keith Andrews for dissent, in the group phase.
Cakir was then the fourth official for England’s quarter-final clash with Italy before performing well as the referee for the semi-final between Portugal and eventual winners Spain and was assigned as fourth official for the final in Kiev.
Later that year, he received the honour of refereeing the Fifa Club World Cup Final in the Japanese city Yokohama but was criticised for hastily sending off Chelsea defender Gary Cahill late on in their 1-0 defeat to Brazilian outfit Corinthians.
It was one of several incidents in which he has contentiously dismissed players belonging to English teams in high-profile matches.
Cakir issued the only red card of Steven Gerrard’s England career for two bookable offences in a 1-1 draw against Ukraine in a World Cup 2014 qualifier at Wembley which contained few fouls.
He also sent Chelsea skipper John Terry packing in the 2012 Champions League semi-final second leg against Barcelona at the Nou Camp which caused him to miss the Munich final after an apparent clash with Alexis Sanchez.
But the most controversial occurred at Old Trafford in March 2013 when Cakir showed a straight red card to Manchester United’s Nani for a high challenge on Real Madrid’s Alvaro Arbeloa in the Champions League last 16 second leg.
The decision was hotly disputed with then United boss Sir Alex Ferguson, players and fans reacting furiously but was defended by former United skipper Roy Keane on ITV and, more importantly, by Uefa officials.
Former top Italian referee Pierlugi Collina was his assessor and a Uefa spokesman said “there are no issues for us regarding the sending off” and confirmed that no action would be taken against him.
Cakir has been officiating in Turkey’s top-flight since 2001, overseeing 12 derbies including five fiery encounters between fierce rivals Fenerbache and Galatasaray.
In 2007, along with colleague Firat Aydinus, he became the first professional referee in Turkish Super Lig when officials started to become full-time.
He first appeared on the Fifa list in 2006, moving up to Uefa premier development category referee in 2010 and to the Elite category a year later.
Cakir’s first major European match was the Europa League semi-final second leg between Fulham and Hamburg in April 2009 which was followed in September that year by his first Champions League group stage game in which he awarded two penalties when Rubin Kazan drew with Barcelona.
He was also named as the fifth best referee in the world in 2013 by the International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS).
His high standing within Uefa was further illustrated in April 2014 with the award of the Europa League semi-final first leg as Benfica beat Juventus 2-1 at the Estadio da Luz.
LAST 10 CHAMPIONS LEAGUE FINAL REFEREES:
2014: Bjorn Kuipers (Netherlands) 2013: Nicola Rizzoli (Italy) 2012: Pedro Proenca (Portugal) 2011: Viktor Kassai (Hungary) 2010: Howard Webb (England) 2009: Massimo Busacca (Switzerland) 2008: Lubos Michel (Slovakia) 2007: Herbert Fandel (Germany) 2006: Terje Hauge (Norway) 2005: Manuel Mejuto Gonzalez (Spain)
Cakir has held a reputation for being a card-happy disciplinarian and has taken centre stage on many occasions in his already distinguished career but has been rewarded for his efforts with one of the highest accolades a European referee could receive.
He is also breaking new ground for Turkish officials with the highest tournament match previously officiated by a Turk being the then-European Champion Clubs’ Cup semi-final which Dogan Babacan refereed 40 years ago.
The selection of Cakir has prompted fears among football fans on Twitter that his strict refereeing style could ruin the occasion as a spectacle.
One wrote: “I believe he will favour Barcelona more because he likes to dish out his cards and send players off.”
Another wrote: “This referee sent off Nani for a silly foul. Well done Uefa for another monumental cock-up. Horrible decision! This guy will kill the game!”
Several people felt an English referee should have been appointed with many suggesting Mark Clattenburg in particular while another thought 2014 World Cup Final referee Nicola Rizzoli would have been a good choice but he took charge of the 2013 Champions League Final at Wembley.
Fluent English speaker Cakir, whose father was also a referee, lives with his wife of 10 years Gamze in the Turkish capital and likes reading, basketball and watching movies.
He takes over from last year’s Champions League referee Bjorn Kuipers, who issued 12 yellow cards and awarded Real Madrid an extra-time penalty in their 4-1 win over city rivals Atletico which clinched their 10th European triumph.
Cakir, one of the most in-form referees in world football at present, was the fourth official for that match in Lisbon and will now step into the middle himself to create his own history.
Red hot form: Cakir has issued five red cards in his last nine games including two last weekend in Bursaspor's goalless draw with Konyaspor (Picture from Fifa/Youtube)
Having still yet to receive the Uefa Super Cup and Uefa Europa League Final, he still has plenty of targets to achieve and many predict he will be the leading candidate for the Euro 2016 and 2018 World Cup Finals.
His progression from a relative unknown six years ago to arguably one of the top 10 referees in Europe speaks volumes for his ability to take control of the biggest games, remain calm under pressure and display positive body language.
Juventus, who have conceded only seven goals in 12 Champions League games this term, will be competing in their first European final since 2003 in manager Massimiliano Allegri’s debut campaign.
Four-time winners Barcelona, in boss Luis Enrique’s first season at the helm, will be desperate to lift the trophy for the first time since 2011 and reclaim European supremacy.
Both sides are seeking a treble having won their respective leagues in Spain and Italy with Juve being victorious in the Coppa Italia for the first time in 20 years while Barca secured the Copa del Rey for the first time since 2012.
Past encounters: Cakir has previously refereed both Barca and Juve on three occasions (Picture from Sky Sports)
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