The reason why an assistant referee was seen crying after Aston Villa’s win over RB Leipzig in the Champions League has been revealed.
Crying Assistant Referee Has To Be Consoled By Leipzig Boss Marco Rose
Italian ref Alessandro Giallatini had to be consoled at the full-time whistle by Leizpig boss Marco Rose, which left viewers perplexed at what had moved the tearful assistant.
The touching moment came moments after Villa beat Leipzig 3-2 in the Champions League league phase match. The result meant the German side became the first team to be eliminated from this year’s competition.
And it all appeared to be too much for the official.
Pure emotion for the beautiful game 🥹#UCLonPrime pic.twitter.com/rdSHwa3bSm
— Amazon Prime Video Sport (@primevideosport) December 10, 2024
However, the reason why the 49-year-old referee was crying has now been explained.
It is because it was Giallatini’s final football match as an assistant referee. Footage showed Giallatini wiping away tears in the centre circle as the two teams exchanged handshakes.
Leipzig boss Rose took the moment to comfort the visibly emotional assistant. Portugal manager Roberto Martinez, who was working as a pundit on Amazon Prime Sport, praised the official’s passion for his craft following the five-goal thriller.
Aston Villa On Course For Automatic Qualification To Champions League Knockout Stages
Aston Villa produced a stunning performance in Germany to send Leipzig crashing out of the Champions League.
Jhon Duran came off the bench to score once again to steal the headline in the electrifying contest. John McGinn broke the deadlock after just three minutes before Lois Openda equalised before the half-hour mark.
Duran reclaimed the lead with a stunning long-range goal but it was cancelled out by Christoph Baumgartner. Then, late on in contest, Ross Barkley’s deflected long-range effort secured the points for the Premier League outfit.
Villa boss Unai Emery shared his thoughts after the game. He said: “We tried to overcome the mistakes we made and we did. More or less we were playing consistently.
“One mistake and they score but then we played very well. Champions League is very difficult and we have to expect that every team playing at home are feeling strong. We played with consistency and domination.”
On achieving a potential automatic qualification spot, the Spaniard added: “Today we were thinking if we won we could be a contender in the last two matches to be in the top eight. We achieved this option and we are going to try and get top eight. We are happy because we are in the top 24.”
