Celtic visit Anderlecht on Wednesday for their 2nd Group B game of this season’s Champions League.
The battle of the underdogs is crucial in determining who ends up grabbing the Europa League spot at the end of the group fixtures, with PSG and Bayern Munich both expected to go through.
Wednesday night’s encounter in Belgium could also be tagged an Europa League round of 32 qualifiers, and it seems UEFA is treating it like one.
33-year-old Spaniard Jesus Gil Manzano, who is yet to officiate a Champions League fixture, will be blowing the whistle when the Hoops play with the Belgian side.
Manzano isn’t in anyway a rookie referee, as he’s in his 4th season handling games on the continental level and has overseen a lot of La Liga games.
He took charge of 3 Europa League group matches last season, and also a round of 32 clash between Borussia Monchengladbach and Fiorentina.
Manzano has taken charge of 2 El-Clasicos in his 16-year refereeing career, but how he fares on the biggest stage of club football remains to be seen.
Celtic can only hope the Spaniard does blow in their favour, with Anderlecht’s home advantage a key factor that could likely influence the decision of a ref taking charge of his first-ever Champions League game.
