Merk to referee final

Refereeing team
Countrymen Christian Schräer and Jan-Hendrik Salver will assist Merk as they have on his previous appointments in Portugal - France's dramatic 2-1 victory against England, and the
2-2 draw between Sweden and Denmark. The fourth official for the final has yet to be confirmed.

'Great moment'
Speaking to euro2004.com, Merk said: "It is a great personal moment for me and I am going to enjoy this moment because I have worked long and hard for it. Not every referee can get as far as the group of referees here in Portugal and I consider it an honour and a privilege.

National pride
"I am sure that all the referees in Germany will be watching the game and I am sure that they will all be encouraging myself and my two assistants. I am glad that at least one German team is in the final. It would be a mistake to prepare for this game differently than for any other match - even if it is a final.

'Bit of luck'
"Everybody has their own way of preparing for such a match but it's absolutely wrong to say to yourself that you should change things because of the occasion. We're a team together and we'll be looking to stay as relaxed as possible. When the game comes around we'll reach the situation where we're fully concentrated and then, of course, you need that little bit of luck that everything will go well."

Major appointments
A dentist by trade, Merk has been trusted with the biggest refereeing tasks by UEFA. He was appointed for the 2002/03 UEFA Champions League final between Juventus FC and AC Milan in Manchester, and also refereed the UEFA EURO 2000™ semi-final between the Netherlands and Italy in Amsterdam.

Very experienced
The 42-year-old was born in Kaiserslautern, and is still based in the city. He has been a referee since his teens, made his German Bundesliga bow in 1988 and came on to the FIFA international list in 1992. Merk is well-known for his work away from the football pitch in aid of humanitarian causes.

Semi-finals confirmed
The appointments were announced today at the Hotel Solverde at São Felix da Marinha, just outside Espinho, along with the match officials for the two semi-finals, which will be played in Lisbon and Porto later this week.

Frisk named
The first will see Swedish referee Anders Frisk oversee Portugal against the Netherlands at the Estádio José Alvalade on Wednesday. Kenneth Petersson and Peter Ekström, also from Sweden, will be the assistants, with the fourth official being Luboš Michel of Slovakia.

Man in the middle
Italian referee Pierluigi Collina will be the man in the middle when Greece play the Czech Republic at Estádio do Dragão on Thursday. His assistants will be compatriots Marco Ivaldi and Narciso Pisacreta, while Valentin Ivanov of Russia will be the fourth official.