Netherlands defender scores equalizer, immediately consoles grieving referee
Netherlands defender Virgil van Dijk followed up his 90th-minute equalizer with a touching embrace for a referee who is going through a loss far larger than a soccer game.
Ovidiu Hategan, 38, officiated Monday’s game between the Netherlands and Germany in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, even though his mother died in the “build-up to the match,” according to BBC News.
Van Dijk, also a defender for Liverpool, scored an injury-time equalizer to draw, 2-2, with Germany and ensure the Netherlands reached the semifinals of the UEFA Nations League. As his team celebrated around him, van Dijk consoled the tearful Hategan.
“That man broke down, stood with tears in his eyes because he had just lost his mother,” van Dijk said.
“I wished him strength and said he had refereed well. It’s a small thing, but I hope it helped him.”
Captain @VirgilvDijk; leading by example 👏👏👏 pic.twitter.com/HrH2UhfeOk
— OnsOranje (@OnsOranje) November 20, 2018
Hategan officiated Barcelona’s Champions League victory over Inter Milan last month and the second leg of Manchester United’s Europa League semifinal win over Celta Vigo in 2017.
More from Yahoo Sports:
• NFL Power Rankings: Sorry, Rams and Chiefs
• Jeff Passan: Yankees’ blockbuster trade sends Boston a message
• Las Vegas set huge over/under, still got crushed on Chiefs-Rams
• Terez Paylor: Chiefs-Rams epitomizes the New NFL
