No doubt about who to write about after the midweek round of games, rookie referee Ayza Gámez taking all the headlines after stopping the match between Atlético and Sevilla ten minutes from the end when visiting keeper Palop was hit by an object thrown from the crowd.

Ayza had already upset the local fans in the first half when he awarded two penalties to the Andalusians (both of which were saved by local keeper Leo Franco), and when he sent off Luccin for a second bookable offence and then changed his mind over whether Antonio Puerta's goal was offside or not, the ground erupted. Palop presented the referee with a Ballantines whisky bottle which had been thrown at him, but when he returned to his goal he was reportedly hit on the head by a beer can, and Ayza pulled the players off the pitch.

The game resumed half an hour later when things had calmed down, but there were further problems before the final whistle when Petrov and Perea were also given their marching orders, leaving Atlético with eight men. Including coaches, assistants and Sevilla president Del Nido (who refused to move from the trainers' bench when the game restarted), Ayza ended the match with a record 17 yellow cards and 3 reds. (25.03.06)