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Romanian referee

, the center of a great scandal after his words considered racist, which led to the postponement of the Champions League match between

on Tuesday, has had a journey marked by several sanctions.

"It's the black man, see who he is": these words addressed by Coltescu, the fourth official, to his compatriot

, the main judge, unleashed a storm that threatens to end his international career.

The Romanian newspaper

reports Coltescu's first reaction after the controversial episode.

According to the newspaper, the assistant would have spoken by phone with his family to try to justify himself: "I'm just trying to be good. I'm not going to read any press sites these days.

At least that I hope, "he confessed.

This engineer by training, born in 1977 in Craiova (south), briefly played as a midfielder for the local team Electroputere (2nd division), before starting as a referee in 1996. "I felt that I would not be a good footballer," he explained to justify his change of position. career, according to the

newspaper

.

In 2003, he entered the list of first division referees and three years later achieved his FIFA referee shield.

"I believe that I will never be able to return to arbitration even 10% of what I have received," he then told the media, citing especially the possibility of traveling abroad.

Suicide attempt

However, in 2007, he is relegated to the 2nd division after "serious mistakes" committed in a game in the Romanian league.

According to the press, he would have denied two penalties to a team, while being too lenient towards rival players.

Affected by the punishment, Sebastian Coltescu would have tried to commit suicide a year later, the media had affirmed then, while several colleagues considered that he was a "victim" of a system that "pushed him to the brink of despair".

"I fear that his refereeing career will end abruptly," referee Adrian Porumboiu had declared, before adding that "when you become a referee, you must be able to resist pressure."

Sebastian Coltescu did, however, return to the fields, before receiving another suspension in the 1st division in 2015, for various "failures", such as canceling three goals against Steaua Bucharest.

The Central Commission of Referees (CCA), however, soon lifted that sanction, as UEFA had chosen him to referee an international youth match.

Despite these ups and downs, he is today the

.

But his future after Tuesday's incident is now uncertain.

"It is the most shameful page in the history of Romanian refereeing": Ion Craciunescu, 70, one of the great Romanian referees, now retired, does not bite his tongue when talking about his partner.

The same one he had described a few years ago as "one of the most talented referees" of the new generation.

According to the criteria of The Trust Project

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