The Romanian referee recalled how he specially studied the game of ex-CSKA Doumbia striker

Romanian FIFA referee Ovidiu Hatsegan says he still remembers the former CSKA striker’s style of play. Seydou Doumbia .

– Does the Romanian referee follow the Russian championship?

– When Russian clubs played in European competitions, we had to follow the play of the top clubs. It helps later when you judge their Champions League and Europa League games.

– How can this help? Can you give at least one example?

– Of course you can. There are many examples. I remember when I was supposed to referee the CSKA game in the Champions League, I specially watched several of his matches. There, a very cunning African striker was then playing in attack. I remember him very well. Now I can’t remember his name or surname exactly (Seydu Doumbia – about “”)

– And what did he remember?

– He had a technique that he liked to use often when he went to fight with the defenders. With one hand he tried to stop the defender, hampering him in every way and making it difficult for him to get to the ball when he was close to him with his body, and he threw his other hand to the side , and, as it was, ostensibly shown: look, ref, I’m on the move, I’m running, I’m not lying. When you judge and you don’t immediately notice what he’s doing, especially when you’re far from the episodes with his participation. Maybe if I hadn’t watched him in the matches of the Russian championship on the video, I wouldn’t have noticed this on the field in the game. And so, from the start of the match, I immediately told him let it be known that such figures did not work with me. A foul was called once, a second time, and that was it,” Hatsegan said as quoted by Euro‑Football.Ru.

Doumbia played for CSKA from 2010 to 2015, as well as in the first half of the 2015/16 season.

European football