Tuesday 19th SeptemberAC Milan vs Newcastle UnitedSan SiroKick-off 5:45pm BST/6:45pm CET

The Magpies are back at European football's top table and have a mouthwatering trip to San Siro for their opening fixture in Group F as they face the seven-time winners of the competition at their famous old home.

Spanish official Sánchez has been appointed for United's clash with Stefano Pioli's men, which will be his second Champions League outing of the season following PSV Eindhoven's 5-1 win over Rangers last month.

Sánchez is an established referee in LaLiga, having spent eight years overseeing games in his home country's top flight after working his way up through the divisions.

The 39-year-old - who has also worked as an economist - has been a FIFA-listed referee since 2017, with his international debut coming in 2019 as he took charge of a friendly between Argentina and Venezuela in which La Vinotinto ran out 3-1 winners.

Sánchez, who has refereed a number of El Clásico fixtures between Real Madrid and Barcelona in his career to date, dished out eight red cards across his 33 games last term - including three in one LaLiga game between Real Betis and Sevilla last November.

In last week's fractious EURO 2024 qualifier between Albania and Poland, he issued a total of 13 yellow cards as Albania secured a 2-0 win.

2023/24 stats

Games (all competitions): 5Yellow cards issued: 25Red cards issued: 1

Assistants

Assistant referees: Raúl Cabañero and Iñigo PrietoFourth official: César SotoVAR: Alejandro HernándezAssistant VAR: Marco Fritz