The Spanish Referees' Committee has announced the appointment of José María Sánchez Martínez to officiate the clash between Real Madrid and Espanyol, scheduled for tomorrow, Saturday, evening at the "RCDE" Stadium, as part of the second round of the Spanish league.
The fixture marks Real Madrid's first appearance of the new La Liga season, their opening-round game having been postponed.
According to "Mundo Deportivo", Sánchez Martínez, born in Murcia, ranks among the leading first-division referees in Spain. He was a strong candidate for this summer's World Cup before the choice ultimately fell on his compatriot Alejandro Hernández Hernández.
The second between Espanyol and Real Madrid
Saturday's clash will be the second Espanyol-Real Madrid meeting that Sánchez Martínez has officiated in the Spanish league.
Their first encounter fell on 27 February 2018, and it left a bitter memory for Real Madrid, who lost away by a single goal to nil against Espanyol.
This latest game comes at the very start of Sánchez Martínez's Spanish league season, though he has already taken charge of one of the UEFA Champions League qualifying-round clashes this term.
Real Madrid the most frequent with Sánchez's whistle
No side has featured more often under Sánchez Martínez in the Spanish league than Real Madrid. The referee has taken charge of 42 matches for the Royal club.
Under his whistle, Real Madrid have racked up 27 wins, 7 draws and 8 defeats.
Their last match with this referee came in round 37 of last season, when they edged out Sevilla by a single goal to nil at the "Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán" Stadium in May.
The game before that ended in defeat to Real Mallorca in round 30, the match during which the Royal club began to lose their hopes of competing for the league title.
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Sánchez Martínez, meanwhile, has officiated 13 Espanyol matches in the Spanish league, during which the club managed 5 wins, 3 draws and 5 defeats.
Their last game under him came in round 15 of last season, a single-goal win over Rayo Vallecano on home soil.
The omens look good for Espanyol. Their last three matches under Sánchez have all ended in victory.
Jorge Figueroa Vázquez will take on the role of video assistant referee "VAR" during the Espanyol and Real Madrid clash.
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