Russian referee Karasev will serve the Champions League match between Barcelona and Benfica 
Russian referee Sergey Karasev will serve the Champions League group stage match between Catalan Barcelona and Lisbon Benfica. This was reported on the website of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA).
Igor Demeshko and Maxim Gavrilin will help him. Kirill Levnikov has been appointed as a reserve arbiter. The Italians Massimiliano Irrati and Paolo Valeri will also work on the Video Assistance to Referees (VAR) system.
Barcelona and Benfica will meet on Tuesday, November 23, as part of the fifth round of the Champions League group stage. The Catalans will host rivals at Camp Nou.
41-year-old Karasev has served seven matches in the Russian championship this season. At the international level, he was involved in the qualification matches of the 2022 World Cup and the Champions League.
In August 2021, Karasev was referee of the UEFA Super Cup match between Chelsea and Villarreal. He was also one of the arbiters of the European Championship 2020.