Enzo Fernández Knocks Referee to the Ground in City's 2-4 Loss to PSG

Some plays are forgotten after five minutes, others keep circulating on social media all night long. The one from Manchester City's 2-4 loss to PSG at the Etihad Stadium falls into the second category, and not exactly because of the final score.

The match, part of matchday two of the 2026-2027 Champions League league phase, ended in a visiting win and gave the Parisian side a European season start to remember. But what got talked about most afterward wasn't a goal, it was a literal collision between Enzo Fernández and the match referee.

The incident happened near the box: the Argentine midfielder went after the ball with the kind of intensity he's known for and, in the process, plowed straight into Sven Jablonski. The official ended up on the ground in an almost comical image, the kind that drew more laughs than controversy from those who saw it. There were no major disciplinary consequences from the clash, just the anecdote of a player who, without meaning to, knocked the match official off his feet.

A Contrast With What Happened a Day Earlier

The scene took on extra weight because of the context surrounding it. Just a day earlier, Carlos Gómez had been sent off for shoving a referee during the match between Vasco and Boca Juniors in the Copa Sudamericana, an episode of real tension between player and official. What happened with Enzo Fernández, by contrast, was an accidental collision during a battle for the ball, with no intent or complaint involved, though the coincidence of two players knocking down or shoving referees in less than 24 hours fueled comparisons between the two incidents.

Beyond the anecdote, the match left numbers that PSG took with ease: 4-2 on the road against a City side that couldn't contain the Parisian attack at the Etihad. For the English club, the result complicates their start to this league phase, while PSG banks a statement road win in their second outing of the competition.

Enzo Fernández's collision with Jablonski will likely go down as one of those curious snapshots that every Champions League season produces: no sanction, no real controversy, but a referee on the ground and a video making the rounds the moment the final whistle blew in Manchester.